Data Mining is very useful in the field of education especially when examining students’ learning behavior in online learning environment. This is due to the potential of data mining in analyzing and uncovering the hidden information of the data itself which is hard and very time consuming if to be done manually. The purpose of this review is to look into how the data mining was tackled by previous scholars and the latest trends on data mining in educational research. Several limitations of existing research are discussed and some directions for future research are suggested

The study of learning analytics provides statistical analysis and extract insights from data, particularly in education. Various studies regarding student engagement in online learning have been conducted at tertiary institutions to verify its effects on students’ learning performance. However, there exists a knowledge gap whereby the types of student-engagement issues derived from learning analytics have not been collectively studied thus far. In order to bridge the knowledge gap, this paper engages a new systematic literature review (SLR) that analysed 42 articles using Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA). The existing research on student engagement in online learning does not extensively integrate the five types of online engagement proposed by Redmond et al., and the use of learning analytics on the subject matter is also limited. Thus, this review sheds light on the types of student engagement indicated by using learning analytics, hoping to enhance students’ learning performance in online learning. As revealed in the findings, some studies measured multifaceted engagement to enhance students’ learning performance, but they are limited in number. Thus, it is recommended that future research incorporate multifaceted engagement such as social, cognitive, collaborative, behavioural, and emotional engagement in online learning and utilise learning analytics to improve students’ learning performance. This review could serve as the basis for future research in online higher education.

STEM education reform plays a critical role in modern education for the country to keep abreast of being competitive in global economy For a long time, STEM disciplines have been in silos, rendering the students unable to connect learned knowledge with real life problems. The emergence of integrated STEM education in some institutions suggests that, this approach makes students better problem solvers and logical thinkers. This paper provided an overview of what teaching strategies dominate in the implementation of integrated STEM education. The research methodology was based on a review of relevant literature search strategy through ERIC, online databases and journals such as Science Direct, Wiley Online Library, Taylor and Francis Online, SpringerLink, IEEE Xplore Digital Library, JSTOR and Journal of STEM Education. The keywords used in the search included integration strategies, science and technology, teaching and learning STEM, STEM in primary school, STEM in secondary school and STEM in higher education. The results of this meta-analysis revealed that, a project-based learning approach is the dominant strategy in STEM education implementation as this method improves the students’ skills and their capability to compete with others in the highly knowledge-based society. Findings from this review will lead educators who are new to STEM education to investigate further on how project-based learning could be effectively implemented in their teaching.

Constructivism is a learning theory that perceives learning as a process of constructing knowledge based from experience. Issues of difficulty in translating this learning theory into a teaching and learning practice have become a debate among educational researchers. One of the learning approaches that reflect the theory of constructivism is project-based learning or PjBL. Terms such as “authentic learning activity” and “hands-on learning” is commonly represented as constructivist which believes and addressed learning through rigorous, relevant and hands-on practice. This study will explore the notion of constructivism as a learning theory in connection with PjBL and investigate the integration of constructivism in PjBL setting. The implications of constructivism in the PjBL setting will also be discussed.

Instructional scaffolding or simply known as scaffolding in education is defined as a guidance or support from teachers, instructors or other knowledgeable persons that facilitate students to achieve their goals in learning. Conceptually, scaffolding means providing students with instructions during the early stage of learning before slowly shifting the responsibility to them as they develop their own understanding and skills. As technology extends learning from classroom to learning communities, same goes to the concept of scaffolding. The scaffolding is no longer implemented via face to-face instruction that literally exists between a teacher and students in a classroom. Currently, the form of instructions that emerges between teachers and students is mediated through technology and the learning communities exist in the online settings. Thus, it is important to acknowledge the suitable form of support required for the students, especially in an online learning environment. The aim of this meta-analysis is to investigate the types of scaffolding that could be implemented in an online learning environment together with its potential in validating students' success in an online learning setting.