ACODE 60's workshop was today and focused on the area of Learning Analytics. Although MOOCs seem to have overtaken analytics as the issue of greatest interest in e-learning there is a case to be made that analytics are a more significant challenge to institutions and their staff. Outside of the US at least, the public higher education sector in Western countries is experiencing a sustained focus on quality. Quality in this case is that measured by performance indicators as scrutinised by the funding agencies of government, and consequently as seen in funding bestowed or withdrawn. These indicators are increasingly dominated by student outcomes such as qualification completion, but also include measures of retention and success within a course of study.

ACODE 60's workshop was today and focused on the area of Learning Analytics. Although MOOCs seem to have overtaken analytics as the issue of greatest interest in e-learning there is a case to be made that analytics are a more significant challenge to institutions and their staff. Outside of the US at least, the public higher education sector in Western countries is experiencing a sustained focus on quality. Quality in this case is that measured by performance indicators as scrutinised by the funding agencies of government, and consequently as seen in funding bestowed or withdrawn. These indicators are increasingly dominated by student outcomes such as qualification completion, but also include measures of retention and success within a course of study.

Years ago, while I was working for the IT group at Victoria I very nearly lost control at a co-worker (I refuse to describe him as a colleague). The idiot thought that it would be a good idea for the University to track people visiting our website and then, based on the pages they visited, spam them with targeted marketing. He failed to appreciate that many people would regard this as a gross violation of privacy and an abuse of our role as an information provider and educator. Luckily for Victoria, he soon left, sadly for Waikato University, they seem to have an idiot all of their own.