Sérgio André Ferreira

Academic Analytics: Mapping the Genome of the University

Higher education institutions have multiple technologic subsystems for administrative, pedagogical management, and quality purposes, which gather an immense volume of data from various sources and which do not communicate with each other. The domain of the analytic performances in education emerges from the need to aggregate multiple sources of data, which the complexity of treatment associated with the ease of mobilizing selected information will make it possible to understand reality and optimize management actions. In this paper, we present the architecture and results achieved in the development of an academic analytics aggregator of multiple sources of data on the educational activity.

Conception of a management tool of Technology Enhanced Learning Environments

This paper describes the process of the conception of a software tool of TELE management. The proposed management tool combines information from two sources: i) the automatic reports produced by the Learning Content Management System (LCMS) Blackboard and ii) the views of students and teachers on the use of the LCMS in the process of teaching and learning. The results show that the architecture of the proposed management tool has the features of a management tool, since its potential to control, to reset and to enhance the use of an LCMS in the process of teaching and learning and teacher training, is shown.

Academic analytics: Anatomy of an exploratory essay

Investment in technological subsystems to support the activity of teaching and learning and the various areas of the life of Higher Education Institutions (HEI) is of increasing importance in the implementation of the policy and strategy of these organizations. Each of these subsystems collects a huge amount of data that, if properly organized, can provide useful information for decision making and informed action, which results in the need to articulate the strategic vision with Information Systems. This study aims to identify the technological requirements and understand the technical difficulties in accessing data sources of different technological subsystems in order to facilitate dialogue between the departments which hold the data to build a future Academic Analytics in a HEI. To achieve these goals a prototype was conceived which involved the aggregation, cleansing and standardization of data sources and resulted in a database that integrates records from three data sources—the LCMS (Learning Content Management System), academic management services and quality management services. This prototype allows reports and analysis to be made. Future studies for the development and implementation of Academic Analytics that can produce information to support decision making and control of the HEI’s activity are also possible.