Dr. Harry Barton Essel is an accomplished Associate Professor in Art Design and Educational Technology at the Department of Educational Innovations in Science and Technology, KNUST. With a multidisciplinary approach, he also contributes to the Department of Publishing Studies and Integrated Rural Art and Industry, fostering collaboration across academic disciplines.

Born in Koforidua in Ghana’s Eastern Region, Dr. Essel’s academic journey began at the Seventh-Day Adventist Demonstration School, followed by Pope John Senior High School, where he nurtured his passion for the arts. He pursued an undergraduate degree at KNUST’s Department of Publishing Studies, after which He served as a Teaching Assistant and Demonstrator. His scholarly pursuits culminated in a PhD in Art Education, earned through KNUST’s Vice-Chancellor’s Initiative Programme, where he conducted groundbreaking research on electronic submission systems for theses and dissertations in institutional repositories.

He also served as a visiting scholar, spearheading Ghana’s first interdisciplinary Human-Machine Interaction Programme in collaboration with Technische Universität (TU) Berlin. Currently, as Principal Investigator for the UNIHUBS Project Ghana—a collaboration between Erasmus University and KNUST—Dr. Essel is empowering university students with digital literacy and employability skills, enhancing their readiness for the evolving job market.

Dr. Barton Essel’s use of programming languages such as Python, R, and SQL enables him to manage and analyze large educational datasets. By employing tools like Jamovi for statistical analysis and machine learning algorithms for classification, regression, and clustering, he produces rigorous, impactful research. His work in teaching and learning analytics has advanced the development of diagnostic, descriptive, prescriptive, and predictive models tailored to educational needs.