'This is not a data problem': Algorithms and Power in Public Higher Education in Canada

"This is not a data problem": Algorithms and Power in Public Higher Education in Canada
Kelly McConvey, Shion Guha

CHI 2024: The ACM CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems
Session: AI for Researchers and Educators

Algorithmic decision-making is increasingly being adopted across public higher education. The expansion of data-driven practices by post-secondary institutions has occurred in parallel with the adoption of New Public Management approaches by neoliberal administrations. In this study, we conduct a qualitative analysis of an in-depth ethnographic case study of data and algorithms in use at a public college in Ontario, Canada. We identify the data, algorithms, and outcomes in use at the college. We assess how the college's processes and relationships support those outcomes and the different stakeholders' perceptions of the college's data-driven systems. In addition, we find that the growing reliance on algorithmic decisions leads to increased student surveillance, exacerbation of existing inequities, and the automation of the faculty-student relationship. Finally, we identify a cycle of increased institutional power perpetuated by algorithmic decision-making, and driven by a push towards financial sustainability.

Pre-recorded video presentations for Papers at CHI 2024