By making clever use of all available data from the field of education, it is theoretically possible to make education more effective and to help individual pupils and students get the most out of their educational experience. When it comes to utilizing big data, however, all kinds of practical, ethical, technical and legal aspects come into play. Researchers from the University of Twente are conducting an exploratory study to inventory the possibilities, opportunities and risks involved.
Massive amounts of data are generated and stored in almost every public and private domain, including education. This includes data from pupil tracking systems, statistics on class size, demographic data on family income and reports produced by the educational inspectorate. By strategically linking all of this information, it may be possible to improve education, for example by using the linked data to determine the most appropriate level for a given pupil. However, there are all sorts of practical, legal and ethical complications that preclude the use of some relevant data sets. For example, schools are not permitted to share data that could be traced back to individual pupils. At the government’s request, researchers at the University of Twente have begun an exploratory study into unlocking and utilizing big data to enhance education.
Components
The study consists of a number of components, starting with an inventory of all available, relevant data. What kind of data are stored, how is it collected, what usage restrictions are in place, and is the owner willing to share the data?
The researchers are also surveying the views of the various parties involved. These include policy makers, educational professionals, scientists and businesspeople. The research team will catalogue the views of these groups to determine which data sets they are willing to share, and which questions they want answered.
The next step in the study will be to identify the technical, ethical and legal possibilities and limitations involved in utilizing big data gleaned from the education field. For example, what kind of centralized, technical infrastructure is needed to index the massive amount of data available? What is the best way to analyse the data, and what are the risks involved in using big data? Potential risks include security issues and the inappropriate use of the data.
Study
The study is being conducted by Ton de Jong, Bernard Veldkamp, Adrie Visscher, Kim Schildkamp, Merel Keijsers, Maurice van Keulen and Martina Meelissen, all of whom are affiliated with the University of Twente (Faculties of Behavioural, Management and Social Sciences and EEMCS) Funding for the study is being provided by the National Transition Board for Education Research (NRO), part of the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO), at the request of the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science. The researchers expect to present their final report in March 2017.
