Rebecca Ferguson is a Professor in the Institute of Educational Technology (IET) at The Open University in the UK, where she works on the Masters in Online and Distance Education (MAODE). Her primary research interests are educational futures and how people learn together online. She is lead author of the Innovating Pedagogy reports. This highly cited series of high-profile annual reports explores new forms of teaching, learning and assessment in order to guide educators and policy makers around the world.
Rebecca has been a pedagogic adviser to the FutureLearn MOOC platform since its foundation, supporting its development of conversational learning. Her extensive experience of MOOC development and evaluation provides a firm basis for her research on learning at scale. She is one of the coordinators of the FutureLearn Academic Network, linking academics from over 160 partner institutions around the world. She is also an executive member of the Society for Learning Analytics Research and a leading member of the international learning analytics community. Her work has been influential in shaping the field, supporting implementation across Europe, and promoting a focus on social learning analytics.