From Education Next: Big Data on Campus: Putting Predictive Analytics to the Test
With increasing pressure on colleges and universities to raise completion rates, predictive analytics is being used to identify at-risk students. The authors of this article put six models to the test to find out if “simple” models were just as effective at predicting student outcomes as more “complex” models provided at a cost by private companies. What investment is the right investment—either of time or dollars? And more importantly, what is being done with the data to intervene and make a difference? As the authors conclude, “While predictive analytics is intended to provide answers, we see further questions ahead.”