Abstract
This issue brief describes data analytics and data mining in the commercial world and how similar techniques (learner analytics and educational data mining) are starting to be applied in education. The brief examines the challenges being encountered and the potential of such efforts for improving student outcomes and the productivity of K-12 education systems. The goal is to help education policymakers and administrators understand how data mining and analytics work and how they can be applied within online learning systems to support educational decision making.