Investigating the role of a Learning Analytics Dashboard in Professional Learning

Rapid technological developments are pervasive across the globe, impacting every facet of life. Learning has become a lifelong endeavour, and professionals must effectively use educational technology to stay up-to-date in their field. Professional learning represents a relatively unexplored application of Learning Analytics (LA), particularly for learners with extensive education experience and unique external pressures. Sparse research in this practice-based context, coupled with a lack of connection with established learning theories, has led to a substantial gap in existing literature. In addition, best practice design of the data visualisations and associated guidance known as Learning Analytics Dashboards (LAD) is yet to be established, with ever changing technology affordances making this a complex mission. This mixed-method case study research aims to fill these gaps. It took place in the authentic context of professional accountancy learning at a commercial tuition provider where 196 learners used a LAD to prepare for a high-stakes exam. The research, consisting of three empirical studies, found Self-Regulated Learning (SRL) can be a valuable framework for understanding learners’ interactions with the LAD, with particular links between Elaboration and Metacognitive Self-regulation behaviours and assessment scores. High perceived usefulness, ease of use and reported LAD usage reflected a learning design which fully incorporated the dashboard. Learners demonstrated a ‘take what you need’ approach, choosing LAD elements relevant to their personal learning journey. Complexity in preference for visualisation types or personalised automated feedback mean best practice design is concluded to embrace variety and data storytelling. This thesis therefore contributes insights from practice-based professional learning into a field primarily focused on academic contexts. It demonstrates existing learning theory can be applied to a professional learning context and offers guidance for the design of student-facing LADs. Finally, it demonstrates the power of stakeholder-led implementation, and hopes to inspire similar practical applications of LAD.