Discover and share good practice for smarter working universities

Giving students power over their learning data

Universities are investing time and money in creating learning analytics systems, but Ed Foster of Nottingham Trent Universities says these systems are only as good to the support given to staff and students who use them.

Timeline revealed for Heidi Plus data analytics service

Key dates have been revealed for the roll out of the Heidi Plus data analytics service, part of the HESA and Jisc business intelligence project. A series of screen shots have also been released for the service which will be phased in from November to replace the original Heidi system.
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Welcome to the intelligent campus

As 'smart homes' become more and more sophisticated, universities are harnessing technology to improve the campus or classroom experience for students. Now institutions are planning on taking it to the next level, by using data from sensors, tracking and the internet, combined with information from other sources, as Jisc's James Clay describes in this blog.

Companies are struggling to find the data skills they need says new report from...

New report from Nesta looks at the data skills that leading companies look for and the implications for policy and management. Policymakers, educators and industry need to address data skills shortages by upskilling workers, improving the supply of data talent from education, and changing perceptions of data work as boring.

Open data in HE intro guide UUK

This introductory guide is intended for professionals working in universities who wish to gain a better understanding of the issues associated with using open data within their institutions. The guide is based on training workshops run by the Open Data Institute for the ‘Creating value from open data’ project.

Show me the numbers – making data analytics work for you

Data analytics are becoming more accessible for higher education institutions. Giles Carden, an advisor and co-designer at HESPA, offers some tips about how to make the best use of them.

Data-driven approaches to teaching excellence

Jisc is developing a service allowing universities that don’t routinely collect and analyse learning data to begin to do so. Jisc's Phil Richards writes in Universities Business how learning analytics already offer a practical way to demonstrate student engagement and could bring more benefits in the future.
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‘Creating value from open data’ programme launches today

Open data can help increase universities' efficiency, says Paul Clark, launching UUK's 'Creating value from open data' joint programme with the Open Data Institute. UUK is already leading a programme of work which supports efficiency and modernisation in the university sector, and open data can play a key role in this. Opening data on, for example, procurement costs, energy costs and usage, or space utilisation will allow institutions to benchmark one another and drive down costs. There may also be opportunities through transferring good practice from one part of the sector to another.
Andy Youell, director of HEDIIP, is a keen jazz drummer

Banging the drum for better data governance

Following the launch of the Higher Education Data & Improvement Programme’s (HEDIIP) New Landscape report, Rosie Niven talks to HEDIIP director and keen jazz drummer Andy Youell about the importance of data and why universities should value it

The rise of the new academic advisor

Could the advent of the TEF see the emergence of a new breed of data-empowered academic advisors? Student experience consultant Brian Hipkin says the growth in student-generated ‘teaching excellence’ metrics could herald the introduction of this role.