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Learning analytics among influential technologies identified by advocacy groups

by admin on 2/14/2012 • Category: Online Education

For academic leaders in higher education, the question is no longer whether or not to introduce technology into their curricula, but which ones will have the greatest impact. According to a new report published by the Educause Learning Initiative in partnership with the New Media Consortium (NMC), game-based learning, analytics and the "internet of things" are three technologies likely to have a lasting influence on the higher education sector, reports Campus Technology.

The study, titled The NMC Horizon Report: 2012 Higher Education Edition, identified numerous new technologies that could potentially shape the academic landscape. The developments outlined in the report were categorized by the immediacy of their likely implementation and the pace at which the technology is progressing.

"Identifying the key emerging technologies for learning is vital at a time when all institutions are forced to make very careful choices about investments in technology," said Malcolm Brown, director of the Educause Learning Initiative, as quoted by the news source. "The Horizon Report goes beyond simply naming technologies; it offers examples of how they are being used, which serves to demonstrate their potential."

Game-based learning focuses on the increasingly social, application-driven way in which students learn using digital course materials via tablet computers. Enhanced interactivity not only makes academic material more engaging, it also enables faculty to use analytics to determine an individual student's aptitude for course material. The report identifies these two technologies as being potentially interrelated as educational applications become more sophisticated and data-driven.

The "internet of things" refers to the changing ways in which students access information online, and how individuals interact with modern computing equipment. The prevalence of gesture-based user interfaces, such as touch screens on smartphones and tablets, will likely be developed further. Technologies such as quick response codes will blur the lines between real-life objects and digital information online.

The implications for academia could be profound, especially within more technical subjects such as mechanical engineering and biology. Experts at the NMC and Educause speculate that further development of internet technologies, such as IPv6 and radio frequency identification, could also revolutionize the way students interact with the world around them.

According to an article published in McKinsey Quarterly, much of the technology relating to the internet of things is becoming increasingly automated. The relationship between objects and information could be revolutionary within academia as a tool to help students understand the complexities of information systems and the world around them.

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