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Ben DanielB.Sc (Juba); DiplComp. (Khartoum); M.Sc (Twente); M.Phil.ED (Oslo); PhD (Sask.)

Professor

Email ben.daniel@otago.ac.nz
Tel +64 3 479 5362

About Ben

I teach Research Methodology (Quantitative, Qualitative, and Mixed Methods), and Educational Technology. For over a decade, my research focused on studying the development of advanced learning technologies for supporting learning and teaching. Currently, I am exploring the role of emergent technologies (Big Data and Learning Analytics, and Social Media) in enhancing learning, teaching and research. I am also researching into the praxis and theories of teaching Research Methodology, and its development as a distinct discipline. Previously, I worked in the health care sector as a Research Methodologist and Innovation Analyst. I also worked in the software industry as a Knowledge Management Software Architect and Learning Specialist.

Teaching

  • Postgraduate and Staff Workshops and Consultations
  • Educational Technology
  • Statistics
  • Quantitative Research
  • Qualitative Research
  • Mixed Methods Research

Research interests

  • Artificial Intelligence in Education (AIED)
  • Big Data and Learning Analytics
  • Data Science in Education
  • The Internet of Things (IoT) and Smart Learning Environments
  • The Pedagogy and Digital Tools for Teaching Research Methodology
  • Social Media Technologies/Semantic Web in learning and teaching

Supervision

I am no longer taking new students in HEDC. Thanks for your interest, and all the best!

Current students (Doctoral)

  • Yan Yang (PhD), Thinking skills and transformative learning
  • Shayden Bell (DClinDent), Management of deep caries – Let's be consistent!
  • Aiswarya Kovanur Kesava (DClintDent) – Dental avulsion injuries in New Zealand – The experiences of affected children and their families
  • See Pei Jun (PhD), Hybrid learning modalities and influence on learning and teaching
  • Pingjing Liang (PhD), Early-career academics' identity and agency
  • Mary Ma Rui (PhD), Peer scaffolding in computer-support collaborative learning in second language learning
  • Soovendran Varadarajan (PhD) – An exploration of E-Portfolio implementation in the Technical and Vocational Education Training (TVET) institute in Malaysia to improve students' motivation
  • Jinming Du (PhD), Artificial Intelligence: The role of Chatbots in enhancing English language teaching to English as a foreign language learners
  • Dao Thi Hong Van (PhD), Patterns of interactions in synchronous online learning
  • Anjin Hu (PhD), Authentic technology-driven assessment
  • Matthew Strother (PhD) – Critical appraisal of statistical models within healthcare
  • Amy Man-Chun (DClintDent), Caregivers' perspectives on oral health care for autistic children in Aotearoa, New Zealand

Current students (Master's)

  • Toni-Ann Alsop (MHEd)
  • Darryl Tong (MHEd)

Past students

  • Jasbir Singh (PhD) – Visualizing the development of authorial voice and identity in undergraduate students, 2024
  • Charlotte Hurst (DClinDent) – Hypomineralised teeth: Perspectives of those with severely affected teeth and New Zealand Orthodontists, 2024
  • Maree Rarity-Steel (PhD) – The teaching experiences of medical interns in a period of transition, 2024
  • Kalika Kastein (PhD) – The role of silence in Peace and Conflict Studies, 2024
  • Anushika Kariyawasam (PhD) – Application of content and language-integrated learning in teaching English as a second language in the context of tertiary education, 2023
  • Sherry Lee (DClinDent Orthodontics) – Patients' experiences with orthodontic treatment through traditional fixed appliances, clear aligners and direct-to-consumer clear aligners, 2022
  • Hisham Mohammed (PhD) – Impact of malocclusion on smiling features, 2022
  • Farah Shawkat (PhD) – Teacherpreneurship: an integrated framework for teaching in the 21st Century University Classroom, 2022
  • Joon Soo Park (PDipHE) – Dental students' knowledge of and attitudes toward medication prescribing in Australia - A Western Australian qualitative study, 2022
  • Larian Nkomo (PhD) – Students' engagement patterns with digital learning technologies: An empirical case of lecture recordings, 2022
  • Gabrielle Hunt (DClinDent) – Students' perceptions of undergraduate endodontic education and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in New Zealand, (Endodontics), 2021
  • Ifeanyi Glory Ndukwe (PhD) – Teaching analytics and teacher dashboards to visualise SET data: Implication to theory and practice, 2021
  • Joon Soo Park (PGCertHighE) – Can social media and a dose of aesthetics be the driver to optimal dental health?, 2020
  • Daryl Tong (PGCertHighE) – A “Combined ARMS” Approach to flipped classroom in postgraduate surgical education for dentists, 2020
  • Finn Gilroy (DClinDent) – Health status of patients receiving root canal treatment in New Zealand general dental practice – A practice-based research study, (Endodontics), 2020
  • Payman Hamadani (DClinDent) – Managing elderly patients requiring endodontic treatment – A New Zealand practice-based research study, (Endodontics), 2020
  • Rachel Tan (PhD) – The impact of globalisation on an emerging university in Tanzania, East Africa, 2019
  • Lucy A Sullivan (DClinDent) – The influence of educational information on understanding and perceptions of root canal treatment, (Endodontics), 2019
  • Raewyn Lesa (PhD) – Stimulated learning environments and the development of clinical judgement in undergraduate nursing students, 2019
  • Naoko Inoue (PhD) – The experiences of native English speaking teachers who work and live in Japan, 2019
  • Russell Butson (PhD) – Changing digital technologies and the impact on everyday experiences of academics: a case study at a research-intensive university, 2019
  • Chris Wang (BSc Hons) – RCT study comparing the effectiveness of mixed reality, three-dimensional monoscopy, moreover, textbook style learning tools for anatomical education in pre-clinical medicine, 2018
  • Hamidreza Mahroeian (PhD) – Big Data and Analytics in Higher Education, 2018
  • Nadine Hoskins (MHEd) – Addressing Space Optimisation in Higher Education, 2018
  • Jasbir Singh (MHEd) – Self-expression and self-perception: Fiji ESL tertiary students' performance and perception of authorial identity in academic English writing
  • Verena Tilson-Scoble (MA) – Learning Experiences of fashion design graduates in the workplace, 2018
  • Rebecca Bird (MHEd) – Sense of community and learning pathways in undergraduate health science, 2018
  • Frank Cook (PGDipHighE) – WelTec engineering students' perceptions of laboratory classes, 2016
  • Shalendra Kumar (MHEd) – Adoption of learning technologies in teaching in Fiji's technical colleges, 2016
  • Hien Vu (MHEd) – The value of exchange programmes at the University of Otago: Implications to Internationalisation, 2015
  • Verena Tilson-Scoble (PGDipHighE), 2014
  • Toni-Ann Alsop (PGCertHighE), 2014

Publications

Koh, J. H. L., Daniel, B. K., Ma, R., Hu, A., & Mazzocco, P. (2024). Validating an online learning dexterity survey of university students’ online learning competence. Asia-Pacific Education Researcher. Advance online publication. doi: 10.1007/s40299-024-00925-3 Journal - Research Article

Friedlander, L. T., Hamadani, P., Chandler, N. P., & Daniel, B. K. (2024). Dentists' perceptions of providing care to community-dwelling older people. Gerodontology. Advance online publication. doi: 10.1111/ger.12795 Journal - Research Article

Friedlander, L. T., Sullivan, L., Chandler, N. P., & Daniel, B. K. (2024). Demystifying root canal treatment: The power of patient education and health literacy. New Zealand Dental Journal, 120(2), 64-74. Journal - Research Article

Liu, Q., Hu, A., & Daniel, B. (2024). Online assessment in higher education: A mapping review and narrative synthesis. Research & Practice in Technology Enhanced Learning. Advance online publication. doi: 10.58459/rptel.2025.20007 Journal - Research Article

Du, J., & Daniel, B. K. (2024). A systematic review of AI-powered chatbots in EFL speaking practice: Transforming language education. Computers & Education: Artificial Intelligence, 6, 100230. doi: 10.1016/j.caeai.2024.100230 Journal - Research Article

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