Michael Steinrock
The landscape of education in the world today is totally different than anything we could have imagined just a few short years ago. The impact of COVID-19 has made it nearly impossible for a traditional in person classroom experience, and brought about the creation of online learning. However, according to Jennifer Brown of EdTech magazine, this sudden change may not be all bad. The transition to online classes has put educators in a very unique and beneficial situation to use data analytics to enhance students learning experience.
Experts argue that school leaders can receive great Return on Investments if they invest in data and technologies for their schools. Being able to use data to distinguish what is and isn't working well for students has never been easier with online learning. For example, A Public School County in Virginia used data to identify which students may not have the best access to wifi and the stringiest internet connection when in an online classroom setting. Their solution was to invest in personal hotspots that could be sent to the students who had weak wifi connections to increase their online experience. Another example is BrightBytes (a high end platform for analyzing student interaction in an online setting), being integrated into online classrooms. BrightByte gives “predictive analytics” to educators to “ provide more visibility into social and emotional learning, which is even more crucial now that many students are missing out on daily face-to-face interactions with their peers and teachers.” BrightByte does this by offering customizable questionnaires that allow students to engage with their teachers and let them know what portions of online learning are really working for them, and what parts they feel as though are challenging. BrightByte even breaks down data into students who they feel are more “high risk,” and in need of extra attention.
I really like the idea of data being used to enhance a teachers knowledge on how their students are doing. Being a student for these past months has been extremely challenging as it is not the same experience as being in an online classroom. I think something that all schools should invest in is a “data management” team of sorts who can sort through this data of how students are engaging in the classroom. This team could use data bases such as BrightByte to track and monitor how they can better explain concepts to students, and what strategies work best to keep students not only engaged, but learning more.
One question I would have however in response to this article is will online school last forever? When this pandemic ends, I wonder if schools will continue to utilize online learning in some capacity. If not, investing in data around online learning may end up being a sunk cost of sorts. However in today’s landscape where ninety-nine percent of schools are still utilizing online learning in some capacity, data on how to improve a students experience is very beneficial.
Source: https://edtechmagazine.com/k12/article/2020/09/how-best-use-data-remote-learning
Source: https://www.brightbytes.net
This blog was truly interesting and incredibly relatable. What we all must realize is that while online schooling is difficult for us as students, it is also difficult and perhaps for professors as well. The ability to utilize data in the way that the public school in Virginia did was enlightening since it provides teachers with a better understanding of why a disadvantaged student is not performing well in their classes. To answer your question of if online school will last forever, I believe that in a way, it will. It's almost inevitable. The world was able to continue education through a global pandemic all thanks to the use of the internet. It's safe to say that "snow days" will no longer be a thing. While data and online schooling has provided benefits to professors and students, I can't help but think about children who utilized school as a safe space to get away from abuse happening at home, or have difficulty staring at a screen, experience learning disabilities, or do not have adequate access to a secure internet connect. What if a student and their family cannot afford a laptop with a camera? Or what if a student lives in a shelter? Is a personalized hot spot enough for families unable to afford a computer? I don’t entirely believe it is. There are several pros and cons to online schooling and the use of data and technology being incorporated completely. While the use of data and technology cna help us reveal a lot about the use of online schooling, I don’t believe that in-person classes should be completely removed from the educational system. Data and technology is ever-evolving and easy for us to utilize as a way to change our lives. While it is great to have this ability, it’s also crucial that we don’t remove the personal relationships that are formed with our professors, classmates, and ability to remove ourselves from screens and focus on a board or book. I did enjoy learning about BrightBytes as it seems to make the effort to acknowledge and provide help for those students who may not have internet access or difficulty learning online. This is a way to utilize data and technology for the better good of society.
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