Adrift In Big Data And Learner Analytics: An Exploratory Study Of A Nascent Data Governance Board

Abstract

In a world of Big Data, today’s higher educational institutions are charged with not only protecting the data of their students, faculty, and staff but also to ethically manage access and use of data. At the same time, higher education is experiencing the effects of disruptive innovation caused by technology that has allowed data to be accessed and interpreted by nonconsumers, those who traditionally did not have self-service access to data prior to new student information systems and learning management systems. This ethnographic study explores the culture of a nascent data governance board at an online consortium in the United States. Data was collected using document analysis, interviews, and a focus group. Once collected the data was analyzed using a two cycle coding method to determine categories, patterns, and themes. The results of this study provide insight for those considering starting a data governance committee, the common concerns or anxieties when it comes to disruptive innovation, and provides considerations for future research on the disruptive innovation in education.