EduTech Convergence Lab (ETCL)

1. Introduction

The EduTech Convergence Lab (ETCL) was established in May 2018 with the aim of leading the domestic and foreign research of educational technology, as well as contributing to the progress and cultivation of the field.

< Background of Establishment >
1. Expansion of advanced educational technology for promoting 4C skills(Collaborative, Critical, Creative, Communicative) essential in 4th industrial revolution era
2. Growing government investment in the educational technology as a future industry with competitive advantage
3. Increasing demand in intelligent educational technology in various levels of institutions

< Missions >
1. Integrate underlying capacities of colleges academically segregated
2. Obtain and conduct challenging R&D projects with regard to learning analytics
3. Support and accomplish educational technology related tasks on campus (CyberCampus, K-MOOC, e-portfolio etc.)
4. Promote graduate students with excellent research competency in learning analytics and support their career capabilities in the field

< Organization of ETCL > (As of January, 2019)
In order to realize these missions, the ETCL is currently operating the following teams.

2. Research Activities and Projects

1) Workshops
From 2016, LAPA(Learning Analytics for Prediction & Action), the former body of ETCL held annual workshops in order to share research outcomes and create a discussion forum for researchers and students in related fields. In 2016, the workshop hosted in June successfully ended, resulting in around 150 people registering for the event. In spirit of the success and confidence of the research progress LAPA had made, the next year in August, LAPA carried on another workshop that proved to be fruitful for over 160 attendees. ETCL has plans to proceed this annual event to make a productive outing of the new institution and deliver a yet another productive and worthy results the lab is discovering.

2017 LAPA workshop

2) Government funded research project
ETCL has been conducting a project funded by the Ministry of Science and ICT since last June. The project aims to develop a system that stimulates learners' self-regulation based on a social crowding in video-based learning environment. Each party in the lab's organization is taking a vigorous part as scheduled to make the ends meet in the upcoming May. The meetings for this project is regularly held every other week to follow up on the progress report and deliver the latest version of the outcome developed.

Project meeting

3. Exchange of research agreement

Since the establishment of ETCL, it has strived to make research agreements with various research institutions and companies in possession of skills and capacities relevant to Learning Analytics (LA). The head of ETCL, Prof. Jo, believes that it is crucial to not just be in touch with players in the field but also to share and learn from each other since LA requires convergence of many disciplines and expertise in nature. From last October, the lab has made MoUs with various institution. Of those, MoU with Albrecht Fortenbacher in Technology Enhanced Learning at HTW research center for culture and computer science in University of Applied Sciences in Berlin, Germany, and with Jeroen Merrienboer in School of Health Professions Educations in Maastricht University in Maastricht, the Netherlands are highly meaningful in that the lab has paved its way to potential international research collaboration to benefit both countries. ETCL has also made research contract with Korea EduTech Industry Association (KETIA), and software solution companies and e-learning companies including 4csoft, Podo software, and Ubion.

MoU agreement with Jeroen Merrienboer in School of Health Professions Educations in Maastricht University		MoU agreement with Albrecht Fortenbacher in Technology Enhanced Learning at HTW research center for culture and computer science in University of Applied Sciences in Berlin		MoU agreement with Korea EduTech Industry Association (KETIA)

4. Participating Researchers

Current faculty at ETCL (in Korean alphabetical order):
Prof. Il-Hyun Jo (Department of Educational Technology)
Prof. Jongwoo Song (Department of Statistics)
Prof. Kyu Yon Lim (Department of Educational Technology)
Prof. Hyo-Jeong So (Department of Educational Technology)
Prof. Hyunggon Park (Department of Electronic and Electrical Engineering)
Prof. Sohye Lim (Department of Communication & Media)

5. Contact Information

Office of EduTech Convergence Lab
Room# 314, Hellen-kwan
52Ewhayeodae-gil,Seodaemun-gu,
Seoul, 03760, Republic of Korea
Tel: 82-2-3277-6689
E-mail: edutechconvergence@gmail.com