A Learning Analytics tool for the analysis of students’ Telegram messages in the context of teamwork virtual activities

Abstract

In the current COVID-19 pandemic situation, online education has been the only approach of most educational institutions. It is necessary to have tools to assess students in online education, even when they carry out activities that are most common in face to face contexts such as teamwork. In order to do so, different methodologies and learning analytics tools can be employed. However, in a complete online context the students not only interact with the asynchronous tools that educational platforms provide but they also use instant messaging tools. This paper describes a Learning Analytics tool that facilitates teachers the evaluation of students’ interactions in Telegram Instant Messaging Tool. It has been employed in the context of the evaluation of the individual acquisition of teamwork competence. The tool has been tested in a computer science course. It had associated an improvement on students’ grades and they show their preference in using instant messaging tools because by using them conversations are more natural.