Addressing Threats to Validity in Supervised Machine Learning: A Framework and Best Practices for Education Researchers

Given the rapid adoption of machine learning methods by education researchers, and the growing acknowledgment of their inherent risks, there is an urgent need for tailored methodological guidance on how to improve and evaluate the validity of inferences drawn from these methods. Drawing on an integr...

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Main Author: Kylie Anglin
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: SAGE Publishing 2024-12-01
Series:AERA Open
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1177/23328584241303495
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author Kylie Anglin
author_facet Kylie Anglin
author_sort Kylie Anglin
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description Given the rapid adoption of machine learning methods by education researchers, and the growing acknowledgment of their inherent risks, there is an urgent need for tailored methodological guidance on how to improve and evaluate the validity of inferences drawn from these methods. Drawing on an integrative literature review and extending a well-known framework for theorizing validity in the social sciences, this article provides both an overview of threats to validity in supervised machine learning and plausible approaches for addressing such threats. It collates a list of current best practices, brings supervised learning challenges into a unified conceptual framework, and offers a straightforward reference guide on crucial validity considerations. Finally, it proposes a novel research protocol for researchers to use during project planning and for reviewers and scholars to use when evaluating the validity of supervised machine learning applications.
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institution Kabale University
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spelling doaj-art-06e12c2789ef4d4388c604ce255ac0db2024-12-18T14:04:07ZengSAGE PublishingAERA Open2332-85842024-12-011010.1177/23328584241303495Addressing Threats to Validity in Supervised Machine Learning: A Framework and Best Practices for Education ResearchersKylie AnglinGiven the rapid adoption of machine learning methods by education researchers, and the growing acknowledgment of their inherent risks, there is an urgent need for tailored methodological guidance on how to improve and evaluate the validity of inferences drawn from these methods. Drawing on an integrative literature review and extending a well-known framework for theorizing validity in the social sciences, this article provides both an overview of threats to validity in supervised machine learning and plausible approaches for addressing such threats. It collates a list of current best practices, brings supervised learning challenges into a unified conceptual framework, and offers a straightforward reference guide on crucial validity considerations. Finally, it proposes a novel research protocol for researchers to use during project planning and for reviewers and scholars to use when evaluating the validity of supervised machine learning applications.https://doi.org/10.1177/23328584241303495
spellingShingle Kylie Anglin
Addressing Threats to Validity in Supervised Machine Learning: A Framework and Best Practices for Education Researchers
AERA Open
title Addressing Threats to Validity in Supervised Machine Learning: A Framework and Best Practices for Education Researchers
title_full Addressing Threats to Validity in Supervised Machine Learning: A Framework and Best Practices for Education Researchers
title_fullStr Addressing Threats to Validity in Supervised Machine Learning: A Framework and Best Practices for Education Researchers
title_full_unstemmed Addressing Threats to Validity in Supervised Machine Learning: A Framework and Best Practices for Education Researchers
title_short Addressing Threats to Validity in Supervised Machine Learning: A Framework and Best Practices for Education Researchers
title_sort addressing threats to validity in supervised machine learning a framework and best practices for education researchers
url https://doi.org/10.1177/23328584241303495
work_keys_str_mv AT kylieanglin addressingthreatstovalidityinsupervisedmachinelearningaframeworkandbestpracticesforeducationresearchers