Data Centres in the University: From Tools to Symbols of Power and Transformation

Abstract

The almost compulsory and compulsive use of digital platforms through which the university community connects to knowledge, research, teaching and management activities has intensified in the pandemic. Faced with this challenge, higher education institutions must address fundamental questions about learning in a post-digital landscape. This paper explores how universities have created or adapted research centres to deal with data generation in their day-to-day activities. Although the centres analyzed in this paper have different profiles and expertise, they all seek to better prepare higher education institutions to cope with the datafication of society manifested in different ways (e.g., digital inclusion, artificial intelligence, privacy, ethical use of data, etc.). Based on a co-design and virtual ethnography, this work is structured in two phases (1) identification and analysis of 31 websites affiliated to university datafication centres, and (2) selection and deepening on 4 core dimensions of work of these centres. These comparative results highlight global trends, research agendas, and priorities, but also illustrate the need to move towards a more multidisciplinary approach, understanding data not only as "tools" but also as "subjects" with an increasingly economical and symbolic power.