News and Events

Red Raider Research Registry Allows for Online Student Participation

by Timothy Howard, Digital Media Coordinator

After achieving Carnegie Tier One designation in 2016, it is no secret that Texas Tech University is known for its high-quality research. Even with this designation, the university continues to make strides. The new Red Raider Research Registry (RRRR) will further expand research at Texas Tech and even give online and distance students more opportunities to participate.

The RRRR is a student data repository that allows students to register and participate in various research projects administered by faculty with the purpose of improving courses and degree programs at Texas Tech. The data students provide to the registry is de-identified, meaning information including names, home addresses, email addresses and eRaider information will not be viewable by researchers. This allows Texas Tech to facilitate academic research while protecting students' confidential information.

Dr. Katherine Austin, assistant vice president for information technology; Dr. Alice Young, associate vice president for research; and Dr. Justin Louder, associate vice provost for eLearning & Academic Partnerships are credited with founding the RRRR. Dr. Marianne Evola, coordinator for Responsible Conduct of Research at Texas Tech, gave us more background about the RRRR.

"In the past, researchers at Texas Tech would reach out to various departments and ask for a certain population of students' data to be pulled and be de-identified," said Evola." Out of respect for student data, the departments ceased to provide that information to researchers. After that source of data had ceased, Drs. Austin, Young and Louder began to field some of the concerns from faculty researchers who no longer had access to that helpful data. The question then became how to solve the issue. They began to realize that if we could create a research system where students can give consent, then researchers would be able to use it to improve courses and programs."

"What is different about the RRRR is that we are now asking students to give that consent. The students now get to be an active part of the decision as to whether or not their data is used for research purposes," Dr. Evola continued. "We are really hoping that students will sign up for the registry knowing that the data will greatly assist students at Texas Tech in the future as well as all of the students that are here now."

Dr. Austin also spoke about the benefits of the RRRR in an email interview.

"The data store will allow faculty to analyze the effectiveness of entire programs, as well as to study how different cohorts perform at Texas Tech University," Austin said. "It will also make the study of student performance much more efficient, reducing the amount of work required to process individual requests for access to this type of data."

Dr. Louder commented on how the RRRR will now allow online and distance students to contribute to the research.

"Currently, online and distance students may not be able to participate in research because most of it happens on the main campus in Lubbock," said Louder." By establishing the RRRR, online and distance students can be contacted and participate in online/ research opportunities that are not currently promoted off the main campus."

Dr. Alice Young gave us more information about how online and distance student participation in the RRRR will benefit the university going forward.

"The information about academic performances of all online and distance students who register will be able to be included in studies of how to improve courses and degree programs," said Young. "Faculty can explore how students' previous course experiences can influence their success in more advanced courses, and this information can help faculty design courses for future online and distance students. As faculty members do research about how to improve TTU courses, it's critical to be sure that studies include information from distance students. If success in advanced courses is different for students who've taken earlier courses online as compared to those who took the courses face-to-face, what changes can we make to help future students succeed."

All students at Texas Tech, including online and distance students, can complete the consent form for the RRRR on Raiderlink, under Action Items in the My Tech tab.