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Do Data Walls Motivate?

This systematic review of 30 empirical studies on data wall usage examined evidence of their affective impacts on teachers and students. The review found that data wall displays elicited a range of positive and negative emotional responses, depending on variables such as the display’s location, contents, and associated social practices. Data walls were reported as enhancing motivation by helping stakeholders to sustain focus on and track progress towards goals, or by fostering comparison and competition. Data walls where class and/or individual students’ data could be identified, for example, through names, pictures, or small sample size, also generated concerns around privacy. These issues highlight the need to consider how data wall use aligns not only with relevant legislation, but also considers the affective impact on its users.