El pasado 1 de julio de 2019, Carlos Delgado Kloos realizó una ponencia invitada titulada «Closing the Loop in Education», en el Auditorio Erik Duval de KU Leuven, Bélgica, como parte del LALA Symposium «Learning Analytics for Feedback at Scale».
In control systems there is a feedback loop that compares the obtained output with the expected one. This allows to correct deviations. Robust theories exist and there are many systems that incorporate them in their operation. To mention just a few of them, consider thermostats, power steering systems, SCADAs, and many others. Learning frameworks have been in essence open-loop systems or systems with a very week and broad feedback loop. At the end of a course, if the learning of a student reaches a minimum, the student can advance to the next course. If not, the course has to be repeated. There is the feedback loop but at a quite broad level. However, one can include much faster feedback loops into the learning design in order to achieve better learning results. Examples of good learning frameworks with fine-grain closed loops are formative assessment, learning analytics based interventions, mastery learning, improvement of teaching material through effectiveness analysis, etc. In the talk, we will analyse educational systems from this point of view and give appropriate examples