Gahyun Callie Sung, assistant professor of learning sciences and educational psychology in the University of Iowa College of Education, has received a $91,716 grant from the Roy J. Carver Charitable Trust. The grant will help launch the Advanced Learning Traces (ALT) Lab – an observation space designed to capture new, sensor-based data on how learning happens in real time.

Sung says the award comes at a pivotal moment as she builds her research program and begins two projects that will start collecting data this semester. 

“The Advanced Learning Traces Lab is an observation lab dedicated to collecting novel, sensor-based data on the process of human learning to trace its mechanisms—hence the word 'trace,'” Sung says. “It’s comparative to a sleep lab but for learning.”

Sung describes the ALT Lab as an observation lab dedicated to collecting “novel sensor-based data sources on the process of human learning to trace its mechanisms.”

She likens it to a sleep lab – only focused on learning – where researchers can study what happens during the learning process, not just learning outcomes. 

That focus is central to the questions Sung hopes the lab can help answer as emerging technologies like artificial intelligence (AI) and extended reality (XR) – technology that merges the physical world with virtual – become more common in education.

“Often, when you look at research on new and emerging educational technology like XR or AI, it tends to focus on final outcomes, like tests or one-time surveys. I think it’s because the technology is so new and people want to see what impact it has. But one of the things my mentors used to say is that with this type of technology, you want to argue it does completely new things – not just old things better,” Sung says, “We really want to understand what’s going on when someone is using it, and the mechanisms of learning that are completely new because of it. To see what goes on during learning in a scalable way – and even for processes that might not be visible to human observers – we need these kinds of methods.”

The ALT Lab will help researchers look more closely at the mechanisms of learning that may be different – or newly possible – when learners interact with tools like AI. 

Sung’s work sits at the intersection of the learning sciences and sensor-based research, with the goal of better understanding how people learn and how new tools might shape that process. She says real-time tracking of cognition and affect could help researchers examine questions such as whether AI reduces cognitive load, how emotions influence learning with AI tools, and what kinds of learning designs work best for different groups of students. 

Sung also sees the research as a path toward more responsive learning technologies – and improvements to current practice – such as feedback informed by learner data. In earlier work, she used student affect data to augment teacher feedback, and she says students responded positively to the approach. 

The ALT Lab is designed to support research across departments and learner populations, reflecting Sung’s interest in cross-disciplinary collaboration at Iowa. She says she’s excited to work with researchers studying learning in contexts that are new to her, including younger children, counselors-in-training, and neurodivergent learners. 

In addition to generating new findings, Sung plans to develop tools and protocols others can use – an approach rooted in her doctoral training and her commitment to making sensor- and AI-related methods more accessible.

“Sensor data is getting more and more ubiquitous. The average cell phone now comes with dozens of sensors,” Sung says. “It’s really important that more people and not just companies are able to play around with sensor data and AI, so they feel equipped to take ownership of the data.”

Looking ahead, Sung hopes the ALT Lab becomes a campus resource for researchers interested in understanding learning while it’s happening – especially as new technologies and interventions continue to emerge.

“I’m hoping that this becomes a test bed for those who are interested in not just looking at final outcomes but for really digging into and observing what goes on during that experience for students,” Sung says. 

Sung also credited the college’s Grants and Research Services Center team for their support, noting that their guidance was instrumental in helping her identify and pursue the opportunity.