PIs: Michael Brown, Stephanie Teasley
Iowa State University
Award Details
Data intensive research is becoming increasingly important across all scientific disciplines. In particular, the field of education research is experiencing a revolution in methodology due to the increasing digitization of the learning process. The Society for Learning Analytics Research (SoLAR) is a key player in effecting this change. This project will support a Doctoral Consortium at the Learning Analytics and Knowledge (LAK) 2020 conference, run by SoLAR, to be held in Frankfurt, Germany. Participating in the consortium will prepare current doctoral students from diverse research backgrounds that make up the interdisciplinary field of Learning Analytics (LA), including computer science, information science, psychology, communication, education, artificial intelligence, and cognitive science. It will also allow them to network with each other and with professors and practitioners who are currently engaged in learning analytics research and related work to ensure the continued development of this community. These activities are critical and timely. The upcoming generation of LA researchers will play a vital role in realizing the potential of using data to improve outcomes for elementary, secondary, and post-secondary students in learning, motivation, and perseverance.
LA is an interdisciplinary field whose goal is to advance and apply knowledge about learning sciences and education to improve all aspects of learning. Learning Analytics methods include data visualization, data mining, data science, and mixed methods approaches combining qualitative and quantitative methods (e.g., interviews and back-end, clickstream data analysis). Capacity building is a central concern within the LA community. SoLAR has historically addressed these needs, in part, through specialized workshops held in conjunction with the Society’s major conference. The Doctoral Consortium workshops host PhD students who are grappling with their dissertation research. This grant provides travel support to US scholars selected through a competitive application process to participate in this event. They present their work for feedback both in the context of workshop, where they receive advice from a panel of expert mentors, and in a poster session in which they interact with the full conference audience. In addition, their work is published in the proceedings of the conference.