Teachers’ perceptions of data management as educational resource

Abstract

Introduction of data-driven tools and practices in education may improve learning but also change education in ways not yet fully understood. Globally, ministries are now beginning to define big data policies for schools. How will this influence the work of teachers, and how do they want to engage with the new sources of information? This study compares two cases from Norway and China, two countries with very different educational systems and cultures, and different implementation policies. In a survey, a hundred primary and secondary school teachers from each country were asked what they wanted to know about their students, and what data they wanted educational big data analysis to be based upon. Qualitative analysis of learning technology infrastructure projects in Tongzhou district in Beijing and in Oslo and national policies provided a backdrop for interpreting the teachers’ answers. Focus group interviews with teachers gave additional insights into the different approaches to educational big data. This study shows that Chinese teachers have a much more open mind and interest for all information data may provide, while Norwegian teachers are more focussed on knowledge acquisition and would like to limit the scope to learning and teaching the curriculum, being concerned about questions related to privacy and data surveillance. Some of these differences could be explained by the differences in context of introducing big data in schools. In China, economic innovation is the driver, while in Norway the pretext for the introduction of learning analytics is adapted education. This study contributes to the knowledge of how data policies will impact on design of learning analytics tools and solutions. Approaches and technologies in this field have a global scope. Therefore, understanding how personal digital data is perceived in different cultural contexts is vital for both development and implementation.