Online learning environments generate a large amount of data about how students interact with platforms, resources, and learning activities. However, this information is often spread across multiple institutional systems and rarely brought together in ways that meaningfully support the student experience. This paper introduces the development of a Student Engagement Dashboard designed to bring these engagement signals together and provide a clearer, more holistic picture of how students are participating in digital learning environments.
In 2020, the establishment of an Online Engagement Advisor role marked a strategic shift toward fostering connection and belonging in the virtual public sphere aligning with principles of community in online learning environments (Garrison et at., 2000; Swan, 2002). Since then, a framework for digital community building has been developed incorporating light touch engagement strategies such as emoji based pulse surveys and structured opportunities for peer interaction. These initiatives prioritise student voice, digital wellbeing, and relational presence in online education.
Building on this work, the current project focuses on bringing engagement data from different institutional systems into a single dashboard. Rather than focusing on academic performance or predictive analytics linked to grades, the dashboard highlights non-academic indicators of participation. These include interaction with tuition materials, participation in digital learning spaces, assessment related activity data, and patterns of time spent engaging within the learning environment. The approach is informed by critical perspectives on learning analytics that emphasise ethical responsibility, student agency and transparency (Slade and Prinsloo, 2013). The aim is not to monitor performance but to highlight signals that may indicate opportunities for supportive, student centred engagement with students.

This practitioner paper shares the rationale for the dashboard, key design decisions, and early insights from its development. It also reflects on practical considerations such as ethical data use, transparency with students, and the role of digital learning professionals working with engagement data. Early reflections suggest that bringing together these signals can help identify opportunities for timely outreach and strengthen students’ sense of connection, belonging, and digital wellbeing in online learning environments.