Course Insights - Analysis and Interventions - eLearning

The following strategies and resources have been produced to assist staff in successfully utilising Course Insights throughout the Semester.

Start of Semester

Review cohort information to identify if you have a high percentage of:

Non-English speaking students

Ice-breaker activites are particularly useful for this cohort, such as:
- Google Maps: Have students search for their home country on Google Maps and share it amongst the group.
- Three Words: Have students describe themselves in three words to the group.
- The Friendly Debate: Have students debate a topic (e.g. What skill is more valuable: creativity or logic?)
- Recommend Academic and English support and Academic workshops

Students who are new to UQ

Facilitate a “make a friend” activity to encourage peer interactions:
- Set aside 10 minutes for students to introduce themselves to someone new and to schedule a casual meeting with that person.
- Follow up in Week 2 to see if everyone met up as planned.
Recommend Academic workshops
Create a short introductory video using UQ's desktop recording software, Kaltura, covering the:
- course structure, schedule and layout
- importance of preparing for class beforehand
- expectation that students are accountable for their learning

International students

Recommend Academic workshops and the UQ Mates program.

Email students who have not accessed either Blackboard or edX (Edge) by the end of Week 1

For step-by-step instructions, refer to the Using the Filter guide.

Week Prior to Census

Review individual student data and using the Engagement toggle, sort data ascending to identify:

Students who have not engaged with online course material by census date

Email those students to suggest that they might not be able to catch up on the missed work and may need to consider withdrawing from the course without academic penalty/ cost impost.

Email students who have failed an assessment task and have low engagement with online content prior to census date

For step-by-step instructions, refer to the Using the Filter guide.

Throughout the Semester

Review student engagement (i.e. video plays) and formative assessment submissions to identify:

Low student enagagement with the content and/or the non-submission of formative assessment

Talk to students in class about the importance of preparation and identify any underlining issues such as time management, procrastination or external factors.
Share a screenshot of the data with students. By showing the actual figures, student will understand their progress in relation to their peers.
If students are routinely not accessing pre-class material, design a formative in class assessment item that matches the learning objectives for the "preparatory work" or consider adding this to course design for the following semester.
Consider the value of grouping students in class based on whether or not they have done the preparatory work. This allows an appropriate depth of discussion based on what the students have prepared for.

After Assessment Tasks

Review Assessment results of the cohort and filter by different demographics. View the Assessment breakdown graph and a range of parameters such as mean, standard deviation, range, minimum and maximum score, as well as total responses to identify:

Assessment tasks where students achieved poor results

Provide students with a general overview or screenshots of the findings to provide students with cohort feedback.
Recommend Academic workshops for students who are struggling.

Email students who did poorly on an assessment item and have low engagement with online materials

For step-by-step instructions, refer to the Using the Filter guide.

End of Semester

Review Assessment results to identify:

Assessment tasks where student struggled

Consider altering the assessment task based on common issues.
Consider including formative assessment in the lead up to a summative task.
Consider including additional resources to assist students in completing summative assessment.

Review Engagement information to identify:

Content that was challenging or confusing (e.g. course videos)

Considering recreating confusing/challenging content.
Look at issues that arose and whether they can be solved in the future by changes to course design.