Xavier Ochoa
Assistant Professor of Learning Analytics
Administration, Leadership, and Technology
Xavier Ochoa is an Assistant Professor of Learning Analytics in the Department of Administration, Leadership, and Technology at the Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development. He holds a Ph.D. in Engineering (Computer Sciences) from the University of Leuven, Belgium (2008), an M.Sc. in Applied Computer Sciences from the Vrije Universiteit Brussels, Belgium (2002), and a B.S. in Computer Science from Escuela Superior Politécnica del Litoral (ESPOL), Ecuador (2000).
Since the beginning of his research career, Xavier has worked at the intersection of education and technology. His research focuses on using cutting-edge technology to enhance human capabilities in education and innovate pedagogical practices to improve learning processes. He began his career with quantitative analysis and modeling of the production, discovery, consumption, and reuse of digital learning materials. This work led him to the emerging field of Learning Analytics, where he was invited as a keynote speaker at the first Learning Analytics and Knowledge (LAK) conference. Currently, Xavier's work is centered on Multimodal Learning Analytics, a sub-field that combines advanced quantitative techniques from Learning Analytics with recent advances in Artificial Intelligence (AI) and smart sensors. His goal is to develop and study tools that enhance awareness, self-reflection, and decision-making for students and instructors in both physical and online learning environments, especially for the development of 21st Century skills. He leads the Augment-Ed research group.
Xavier Ochoa has served as Vice-President of the Society for Learning Analytics Research (SoLAR) and Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Learning Analytics. He was a founding member and long-time coordinator of the Latin American Community on Learning Technologies (LACLO). He has received several awards, including the Best Researcher Award (2012 and 2018) and Best Professor Award (2013) at ESPOL, as well as the 5-year Best Researcher in Computer Science by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) in Ecuador (2014). He has also received multiple Best Paper Awards at international conferences, including LAK.
Previously, Xavier was a Principal Professor at ESPOL (2002-2018) in Ecuador, where he directed the Information Technology Center (CTI) and the Teaching and Learning Technology (TEA) research group.
Selected Publications
- Ochoa, X., Echeverria, V., Carrillo, G., Heredia, V., & Chiluiza, K. (2023). Supporting Online Collaborative Work at Scale: A Mixed-Methods Study of a Learning Analytics Tool. In Proceedings of the Tenth ACM Conference on Learning@ Scale (pp. 237-247).
- Ochoa, X. (2022). Multimodal systems for automated oral presentation feedback: A comparative analysis. In The multimodal learning analytics handbook (pp. 53-78). Cham: Springer International Publishing.
- Ochoa, X. (2022). Multimodal learning analytics-Rationale, process, examples, and direction. The handbook of learning analytics, (pp. 54-65). Society for Learning Analytics Research.
- Ochoa, X., & Dominguez, F. (2020). Controlled evaluation of a multimodal system to improve oral presentation skills in a real learning setting. British Journal of Educational Technology, 51(5), 1615-1630.
- Ochoa, X., Domínguez, F., Guamán, B., Maya, R., Falcones, G., & Castells, J. (2018, March). The RAP system: Automatic feedback of oral presentation skills using multimodal analysis and low-cost sensors. In Proceedings of the 8th international conference on learning analytics and knowledge (pp. 360-364).