Real-time learning analytics system for improvement of on-site lectures

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to propose a real-time lecture supporting system. The target of this study is on-site classrooms where teachers give lectures and a lot of students listen to teachers’ explanations, conduct exercises, etc. Design/methodology/approach: The proposed system uses an e-learning system and an e-book system to collect teaching and learning activities from a teacher and students in real time. The collected data are immediately analyzed to provide feedback to the teacher just before the lecture starts and during the lecture. For example, the teacher can check which pages were well previewed and which pages were not previewed by students using the preview achievement graph. During the lecture, real-time analytics graphs are shown on the teacher’s PC. The teacher can easily grasp students’ status and whether or not students are following the teacher’s explanation. Findings: Through the case study, the authors first confirmed the effectiveness of each tool developed in this study. Then, the authors conducted a large-scale experiment using a real-time analytics graph and investigated whether the proposed system could improve the teaching and learning in on-site classrooms. The results indicated that teachers could adjust the speed of their lecture based on the real-time feedback system, which also resulted in encouraging students to put bookmarks and highlights on keywords and sentences. Originality/value: Real-time learning analytics enables teachers and students to enhance their teaching and learning during lectures. Teachers should start considering this new strategy to improve their lectures immediately.