The document summarizes the work of HuLAR, the Hub for Learning Analytics Research at the University of Oslo in Norway. HuLAR coordinates resources and infrastructure to support learning analytics research and development across 10 nodes/departments at the university. It oversees 16 projects exploring topics like learning design, discourse analysis, and legal frameworks. A key focus is establishing technical infrastructure for consent handling, data storage, and analysis tools while complying with privacy regulations. However, challenges include limited resources for data scientists, difficulties obtaining student consent, and complex legal aspects that restrict the use of learning analytics for quality improvement.

1. Learning Analytics Research and Development work at
University of Oslo, Norway
Hub for Learning Analytics Research (HuLAR)
20th Jisc learning analytics network meeting 21 April 2021
Jan Dolonen, Department of Education, University of Oslo, Norway
UiO University of Oslo

2. Outline
• Background
• What HuLAR is
• Research and development projects
• Technical infrastructure
• Legal work
• Experiences and reflections

3. Background
• Last 10 years:
• Focus on digitalisation in Higher Ed. in Norway
• Researchers' need to handle big data in Science
• Increasingly difficult to support the researchers’ specific IT needs
• Univ. of Oslo:
• Master plan for IT in research and education
• Hub/node network structures for IT in research
• Currently 10 hub/node networks at UiO within various research themes such
as video analysis, automated text analysis, AI/ML/DL, data management, GIS-
data, 3D visualisations, learning analytics etc.

4. What is HuLAR?
• A hub/node network for learning analytics (LA) research and practice
development
• Hub: a department with on-going research on LA
• Nodes: Departments and centres at UiO with LA needs
• We share similar needs for specific IT support/infrastructure
• The hub coordinates resources and supports the nodes within the network
• Department of Education is the hub and there are 10 nodes
• Established a steering group with main nodes/partners
• 3 years of funding
• Purpose:
• Research driven practice development at UiO
• Establish technical infrastructure for LA research and practices

5. Projects
• 16 projects within HuLAR
• Project themes:
• Learning analytics for learning/curriculum design
• Infrastructures for consent handling, RCT's, automatic
pseudonymisation, log analysis and visualizations
• Automated feedback; Natural Language Processing (NLP)
• Legal education: digitizing legal education and legal practices in
Norway

6. CADA: Canvas discussion analytics tool
Dashboard to
provide teachers
with visualizations
of student
participation and
discourse in
Canvas
Learning analytics
for learning design

7. Talkwall: Supporting dialogic teaching and learning
Analyse how
students interact
with peers and
ideas
Social and
epistemic analysis

8. Technical infrastructure
• Web services for consent handling, secure data collection and
storage, data wrangling, analysis, and presentation
• Provides state-of-the-art analysis tools, follows legal and ethical
requirements, FAIR-principles
• Experimenting with various data warehouse solutions for learners’
log data
• Plugin development for the main learning management system in
Norway
• Documentation and how-to manuals

9. Legal work: LA for teaching and learning
• Regulations for processing of students' personal data in Norway: GDPR and
the Universities and University Colleges Act
• In the UK you can use consent and "legitimate interests" as legal basis
• In Norway: Universities are considered public authorities, thus "legitimate
interests" may not apply.
• Does not apply to processing carried out by public authorities in the performance of
their tasks
• We may have to use "public interest" as legal basis in conjunction with the
Universities and University Colleges Act
• Limits the possibilities for processing students' personal data
• Established a legal working group:
• Examine the legal basis for LA in teaching and learning, Jisc and SURF approaches

10. Experiences and reflections
• HuLAR - not a project but a network
• Several projects; difficult to create coherent progress towards to the objectives
• LA is trendy, many are interested, but lack the labour force
• Core of developers, overloaded with work, lack data scientists (domain knowl.)
• Research is doing fine except difficult to get students' consents
• Quality development (learning/curriculum design): lack of legal basis
• Legal aspects
• GDPR and the Universities and University Colleges Act make it complex
• Evaluation on a case to case basis makes an overall plan difficult
Thank you!

11. Contact
Jan Dolonen
Leader of HuLAR (Hub for Learning Analytics Research), University of Oslo, Norway
j.a.dolonen@uv.uio.no
HuLAR
https://www.uv.uio.no/iped/english/research/projects/hub-node-hular/index.html