abstract:Learning analytics involve the process of gathering data about students and using the information to intervene in their lives to improve learning and institutional outcomes. Many academic libraries now participate in learning analytics. However, such practices raise privacy and intellectual freedom issues due to sensitive data practices. But, few research studies address how library practitioners perceive the ethical issues. This article does so by analyzing interviews with library practitioners. The findings suggest that library professionals seek ethical "bright lines"—that is, clearly defined standards—where few exist and that ethical guidance is limited. Though library practitioners recognize that data practices should be scoped and justified, their efforts have come under severe scrutiny—and sometimes harassment—from their professional peers. The article highlights why ethical dissonance has emerged in the profession regarding learning analytics and how library practices might better account for the harms and benefits of learning analytics.

中文翻译：

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“仅仅因为你可以并不意味着你应该”：从业者对学习分析伦理的看法

摘要：学习分析涉及收集有关学生的数据并使用这些信息干预他们的生活以改善学习和机构成果的过程。许多学术图书馆现在参与学习分析。但是，由于敏感数据的做法，此类做法会引发隐私和知识自由问题。但是，很少有研究涉及图书馆从业人员如何看待道德问题。本文通过分析对图书馆从业者的采访来做到这一点。调查结果表明，图书馆专业人士寻求道德“明线”——即明确定义的标准——在那里很少存在，道德指导也很有限。尽管图书馆从业者认识到数据实践应该有范围和合理性，他们的努力受到了专业同行的严格审查——有时甚至是骚扰。这篇文章强调了为什么在学习分析领域出现了道德不和谐，以及图书馆实践如何更好地解释学习分析的危害和好处。