Lessons Learned from a Faculty-Led Project: Using Learning Analytics for Course Design

This showcase describes a project that used student activity data from the Learning Management System (LMS) to inform course design decisions in a blended learning context. Two blended courses were offered in the General Education curriculum at a community college, with each course employing a different design configuration. Student activity was tracked and compared across both classes to determine whether one design resulted in more engagement with the online course materials. The two courses shared similar subject matter, and were taught by the same instructor. Initial results indicated that student engagement and performance were higher in the frontloaded configuration compared to the bookend design. Findings were then applied to a course redesign aimed at increasing online student engagement in the underperforming course. The secondary comparison also found higher levels of engagement and performance in the redesigned course. The results offer a potential template for faculty and course designers to make use of data generated by student activity in the online environment