Learner Engagement Analytics Dashboard (LEAD)

The Learner Engagement Analytics Dashboard (LEAD) is a course-level learning analytics dashboard that displays Canvas, Kaltura MediaSpace and Unizin Engage e-text data to instructors enrolled in Canvas. Initially only Principal Instructors had access, but as of fall 2021 auxiliary and supervisory instructors are also able to access LEAD. LEAD presents visualizations using Tableau, UW-Madison’s institutional data visualization tool. As the LEAD tool continues to evolve, we anticipate future improvements including the addition of more data from the Learn@UW suite of tools and additional visualizations.

LEAD is part of UW-Madison’s broader learning analytics efforts. More information about learning analytics at UW-Madison is available from the Vice Provost for Teaching and Learning and DoIT Academic Technology. For practical information about using course-level learning analytics, please see our guide “What are the pedagogical uses of learning analytics?“

Key Features

Three visualizations of student activity data: Page Views by Date and Hour, Grades by Page Views, and Page Views by Activity Type.
Ability to filter the data in each visualization using five different filters (Date, Course Name, Activity Type, Activity Type Name, Student Name)
Includes data from Canvas (learning management system), Kaltura MediaSpace (media hosting system) and Unizin Engage (eText hosting service)
FERPA compliant with protections in place around the student data
Currently available for instructors teaching for-credit courses who are enrolled in Canvas as the Principal Instructor, Auxiliary Instructor or Supervisory Instructor

Integrations

While LEAD is a standalone dashboard, it consumes data from Canvas, Kaltura MediaSpace and Unizin Engage e-text. LEAD then presents this data through Tableau, UW-Madison’s data visualization tool.

Instructional Uses

LEAD can help instructors answer a number of questions such as:

Are students doing the online reading?
When are they accessing my course materials? And should I change how or when I make my materials available?
Are there students who are frequently accessing my course materials who are struggling?
Are there students who appear to be disengaged from the class and thus at risk of falling behind or failing?
Is it worth the time to create interactive content or media?
Do they watch the video before they participate in the online discussion?
When is a good time to schedule review sessions or office hours?
How can I provide individualized learning, for both high-achievers and students who may need more support?

Getting Started

Instructors can access LEAD at go.wisc.edu/lead. Access to the dashboard as well as additional information about LEAD can be found in this knowledge base document. For easiest access to prior semesters of LEAD (each semester has a separate link) as well as other learning analytics resources, add the Learning Analytics for Instructors Widget to your MyUW page.

Helpful Resources

Support

The DoIT Help Desk provides instructors, staff and students with free tech support and troubleshooting help by phone at 608.264.4357, email at help@doit.wisc.edu and chat at helpdesk.wisc.edu. In-person support is also available at the DoIT Help Desk service desk in the Computer Sciences building. Visit helpdesk.wisc.edu for hours and more information.

Instructors and instructional staff can also request a consultation through the DoIT Help Desk. A DoIT AT consultant will help you select and use the right learning technology to improve student success. In addition, the Learn@UW KnowledgeBase offers helpful documents for instructors, course owners and students.