Education Technology Services
Combining technology and data analytics in education
With multiple businesses and organisations going digital in the past decade, the sheer amount of data generated every minute is astounding. This data is beneficial in many ways. Sectors such as FMCGs, banking, and insurance are already leveraging big data to streamline and automate their processes and drive better business outcomes.
One industry that can benefit immensely from data-led insights is education. The sector has been slow and reluctant in shedding legacy systems and in adopting new-age technologies. And yet, as the COVID-19 pandemic forced the entire industry to digitise overnight, it was edutech that enabled learning to continue with minimal disruption.
A CIO survey by Gartner in 2021 reveals that 86% of CIOs globally expect sustained demand for digital products and services in higher education. The industry’s data handling capability must also rise in response to edutech adoption. Technology and data analytics must co-exist to improve educational products and processes.
The benefits of data analytics in education
Deploying data analytics in education works in two ways. It helps educational institutions with improving administrative processes as well as enhancing the learner journey, both in and out of the classroom. Here are five ways in which data-led insights can enrich education.
Better planning of digital resources
Institutions are finally shifting from the conservative, teacher-led pattern to a more personalised, learner-centric model. With hybrid learning becoming the norm, schools are forced to invest in e-learning platforms and shift education online.
With data analytics, especially in higher education, schools will better able to conceptualise digital resources for teachers, students, and administrative staff and regularly update their technical infrastructure. This can enhance ROIs and improve the user experience.
Popular online learning platforms owe their commercial success to the judicious use of learner search data. Data mining enables them to tap into user preferences in real time and offer a wide range of high-demand courses. Data-savvy institutions can deploy the same methodology to best fit potential students.
Enhanced data security
Institutions generate a lot of sensitive student data. If leaked, misplaced, or lost, it can result in serious privacy or security breaches. Investing in analytics-enabled enterprise resource planning (ERPs) software allows schools to track sensitive student data at will while maintaining utmost confidentiality.
Streamlining workflows
Combining analytics with an ERP or SIS (Student Information System) helps automate and streamline several administrative processes, such as admissions, staff recruitment, payments, and library management, leaving employees free to focus on human initiatives.
Developing predictive models
Universities struggle in two key areas — getting new enrolments and controlling the dropout rate. With data-driven algorithms, they can develop predictive models that can help in the following ways:
- Using indicators such as student academic history, extracurricular interests, and geographical location, they can tap into the right demographic with a higher likelihood of enrolment.
- With performance data and student engagement metrics, they can identify students with a higher chance of dropping out of their selected courses and take preventive measures.
- Data can track at-risk and struggling students with financial issues, prompting timely intervention and support initiatives.
Developing prescriptive models
Edutech has enabled the automation of several processes throughout the student lifecycle, such as payment through ERP portals, radio frequency identification (RFID) for attendance marking, course selection through e-learning platforms, and online assessments with real-time feedback. Integrating data from all these touchpoints can help build virtual student profiles and gauge their engagement levels in various activities. Universities can use this information to develop prescriptive models to guide students to the right courses and resources, ensuring that they stay invested in learning.
Marketing professionals say that personalisation based on behavioural data favourably impacts ROI. Using virtual profiles, institutions can segment students and hyper-target them with customised content and best-fit academic programmes based on their ‘virtual personas.’ Data analytics in the education industry is a game changer. Combined with edutech, data has the potential to optimise institutional efficiency while empowering students to make holistic choices. Armed with big data, educational institutions can transcend socio-economic and geographical barriers and offer students a seamless learning experience.
For organisations on the digital transformation journey, agility is key in responding to a rapidly changing technology and business landscape. Now more than ever, it is crucial to deliver and exceed organisational expectations with a robust digital mindset backed by innovation. Enabling businesses to sense, learn, respond, and evolve like living organisms will be imperative for business excellence. A comprehensive yet modular suite of services is doing precisely that. Equipping organisations with intuitive decision-making automatically at scale, actionable insights based on real-time solutions, anytime/anywhere experience, and in-depth data visibility across functions leading to hyper-productivity, Live Enterprise is building connected organisations that are innovating collaboratively for the future.
How can Infosys BPM help?
Infosys BPM offers holistic edutech solutions that help you integrate new-age learning with digital technologies. Our learning solutions combine deep domain knowledge with strategic programs and process management experience to enhance productivity and cost efficiency.
