As with most digital tools (Canvas, Instagram, and so on), when students use this tool we collect data. Sometimes we’ll directly ask students questions and collect responses, and other times we’ll look at how students use the tool itself. Here are a few of our guiding principles:
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We take our responsibility for protecting data very seriously. Whenever possible we use anonymized, de-identified, or aggregate data for our analyses. This protects students from being connected directly to their answers or tool usage. We follow all relevant laws and policies and our systems are approved for storing sensitive data.
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We follow the rules set for us by the University of Michigan, the state of Michigan and the federal government -- through laws like FERPA and the University’s Institutional Review Board -- on how we collect, store, analyze, and disseminate learning analytics data.
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We’re diligent about asking students their permission for research studies. Sometimes the data we collect is to help us improve a tool or a course. Other times, the data we collect is for a research study. If we use data for research where we need permission from students, we will ask for their consent to participate. In these cases, if they want to opt-out, they'll have a way to do that without penalty.
Learning analytics is good for us and good for students. As we collect and analyze data, we make improvements to courses, deliver more personalized content, and help students succeed by studying what works (and what doesn’t).