Digital data in education

This unit explores a range of theoretical and practical issues arising from the growing importance of data in education. The unit is designed regardless of your level of familiarity with the topic. Data is understood broadly and includes a variety of approaches based on quantification, prediction and automation (i.e. Artificial Intelligence and automated decision-making).  In this sense, the unit is organised around types of data as ‘case studies’ and for each one it asks a number of critical and practical questions: why is this data being collected? By whom (or what) is it being collected and then analysed? What are its outputs? Who is supposed to benefit from these outputs? What pedagogical or administrative decisions can be automated as a result? How can a non-specialist educator enhance her/his professional practice by engaging with these data and the associated technologies?