Members of FOI's Learning Analytics Laboratory (LA Lab) this year again took an active part in the Learning Analytics and Knowledge conference (LAK26), held between 27 April and 1 May in Bergen, Norway. 

LAK is the most significant international scientific conference gathering learning analytics researchers, and FOI's LA Lab participates every year, sharing recent research and development related to learning analytics, learning design, and AI in education. The conference is organized by the Society for Learning Analytics Research (SoLAR).

This year, as part of the pre-conference program, the fourth InnovateDesign workshop was held, focused on Evaluating the Quality of Learning Design of Courses and Curricula. The workshop was co-organized by Prof. Blaženka Divjak, Darko Grabar, Barbi Svetec, Petra Vondra (FOI), Bart Rienties (The Open University), Mladen Raković, Dragan Gašević (Monash University), and Tom Penniston (University of Maryland). It encompassed presentations and discussions on curriculum design, learning design quality, and learning paths and patterns. It also included hands-on activities related to AI-supported curriculum design in the innovative Balanced Design Planning (BDP) learning design tool (learning-design.eu) developed by FOI.

Moreover, Prof. Blaženka Divjak participated as a co-organizer of the sixth LAKAssess workshop on Learning Analytics and Assessment, and as a panelist in the workshop on Curriculum Analytics for 21st-Century Competencies in Postsecondary Education.

Within the main conference program, FOI’s team presented a poster on Enhancing Program-Level Learning Design through Curriculum Analytics, prepared by Prof. Blaženka Divjak, Barbi Svetec, Petra Vondra, and Darko Grabar. The poster presents the latest developments of the BDP tool, supporting study program development through curriculum mapping, curriculum analytics and AI support.

Participation in LAK26 was an excellent opportunity to share the work done by FOI’s LA Lab and international partners within current projects, particularly Streamlining AI in Learning Reimagination – SAILeR (Erasmus+) and Trustworthy Learning Analytics and AI for Sound Learning Design - TRUELA (Croatian Science Foundation).

Finally, and importantly, at this year’s Annual General Meeting, Prof. Blaženka Divjak officially assumed the role of president of SoLAR, reflecting her outstanding contribution to learning analytics research and practice and her active participation in the SoLAR community in past years.