If you have any comments and/or contributions to make, please send them...

• ...using the Online Comment/Feedback Form or
• ...email the editor John Dalziel at support@rsc-northwest.ac.uk
  

The Regional Support Centre eMagazine provides news of funding, current projects, initiatives and examples of good practice in eLearning, and offers ideas and support for the HE, FE, ACL, 6th Form and Specialist College Managers & Practitioners, that are supported by the RSC here in the Northwest.

"I've downloaded some excellent software from this site" (John Dalziel eLearning Adviser)

The 2008 Adult Learners' Week award nominations process is up and running.

The website has had a facelift and this year it should be easier to go straight to the preferred type of nomination...

• family,
  
• individual,
  
• project or
  
• group

Please visit http://www.niace.org.uk/ALW/nominations/default.htm to make your nomination.

The closing date for nominations is midday, 25 January2008

10 years of weblogs

"As I added this new section to the eMagazine today, the BBC informed me that it was the tenth anniversary of the date in 1997 that Jorn Barger (who is, amazingly enough, still updating the original Robot Wisdom weblog; http://www.robotwisdom.com/index.html) coined the term "weblog" to describe what he was publishing on the Internet. Things have certainly taken off since then, haven't they?" John Dalziel (Editor)

You can read the article at http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/7147728.stm.

• 6 Reasons I'm Not Hooked on Podcasts (Mediashift )
  
• A dozen of creative and unusual workplaces (SmashingMagazine )
  
• Are We Creating Hardworking Idiots? (Workforce Development )
  
• How to support learning by trainers? (Pontydysgu )
  
• Intute
• Knives and restaurants (edu.blog.com )
  
• Revamping the Story Flow for Journalists (Mediashift )
• Royal Changes (Student 2.0 )
  
• typoGenerator (Jane's E-Learning Pick of the Day )
  

"A year ago, Mark wrote about the factors that were limiting the growth of podcast adoption. Some of the problems include the difficulty in finding quality content, a lack of understanding of the medium, and a general impatience in getting podcasts to work. I can relate. Try as I might, I haven’t been able to make podcasts a part of my daily life, and have often asked myself why."

Read more at http://www.pbs.org/mediashift/2007/12/post_3.html . 

"Your workplace and the atmosphere surrounding you determine the way you work and explore your imagination. The more inspirational your workplace is, the easier it is to break the creativity block and discover new ideas. And apparently there is a number of things you can do to improve your personal workflow."

Read more at http://www.smashingmagazine.com/2007/12/10/monday-inspiration-creative-workplaces/ .

"Thanks to Adrian Savage, a writer, Englishman, and a retired business executive, in that order. He authored the following piece "Are We Creating Hardworking Idiots?"

Read more at http://kissaneasylum.typepad.com/workforce_development/2007/12/are-we-creating.html . 

"One of the benefits of coming back to a subject after a break of several years is that it allows you to review how your ideas have changed. Whereas in the past I had focused on formal courses and qualifications, and formal job descriptions, now I was more interested in informal learning and in how learning and professional development related to practice"

Read more and find out about TTPlus, a European project, at http://www.pontydysgu.org/2007/12/training-of-trainers/ . 

Intute has launched a new edition of the Internet for Geography online tutorial in the Virtual Training Suite. The tutorial is free to use, and aims to help students develop Internet research skills to help with university courses in Geography.

Read more about this at http://www.intute.ac.uk/blog/. 

OR

visit the resource at http://www.vts.intute.ac.uk/he/tutorial/geographer

An anecdote from Jimmy Wales founder of Wikipedia,has sparked an interesting debate - read more at http://edu.blogs.com/edublogs/2007/12/knives-and-rest.html .

I particularly liked this comment on the blog... 

"There are too many people out there who would take any potentially harmful (though extremely useful) tool away from our students. I urge people to think about the number of teen driving accidents, and ask themselves why, under the same logic, we wouldn't look to abolish automobiles."

"I’d like to explore new ways of doing story generation, reporting and follow-up, using the tools of online collaboration and going beyond traditional shoe-leather reporting. I don’t want to throw out the old style but build on it, taking the best of the new and the old to create something more open and more collaborative. In that spirit, I am outlining three basic flows: old-school reporting workflow (pre-Internet); current reporting; and a new-school method that imagines more people engaged online"

Find out, read more at http://www.pbs.org/mediashift/2007/12/reconstructing_reportingopenin.html . 

The Christmas Broadcast was started in 1932 with King George V and was first televised by Her Majesty the Queen in 1957. Now, 50 years on, this broadcast has been uploaded to YouTube for the first time… but why? Read more at http://students2oh.org/2007/12/26/royal-changes/ .

"Many educational organizations start using handheld devices for learning. The aim of this paper is to identify the current status of handheld devices and their appropriateness for mobile learning. First..."

Read more and access the download pdf hyperlink at http://boggse-learningchronicle.typepad.com/the_online_training_conte/2007/12/technical-speci.html .

typoGenerator is a random generator for 'typoPosters'. These are posters, created from images and letters/text that just to look good.

Link and Jane's Blog at http://janeknight.typepad.com/pick/2007/12/typogenerator.html .

My first effort...

• Events: RSC-Northwest Website
  
  
• eGuide Plus Workshops: 1st February 2008 and 3rd June 2008 (NIACE & RSC)
  
  
• eGuides Programme 2007 - 2008 (NIACE)
  3-Day event in Northwest - 19th, 20th February and 3rd April 2008 - Liverpool
  3-Day event in Northwest - 9th, 10th April and 13th May 2008 - Manchester
  eGuides National Event 13th March 2008 - The University of Manchester Conference Centre (NIACE)
  
  
• NIACE: Thursday-Friday, 17 and 18 January 2008

  Building Family Capital

• Tuesday & Wednesday 29th & 30th January 2008

Expand your leadership and management skills

• Thursday 14 February 2008

Making Credit Systems work

• Tuesday 15th April 2008

JISC Conference 2008 - Enabling Innovation

1st February 2008 and 3rd June 2008; Liverpool.

This workshops are designed to offer you the chance to extend and refresh your skills, to provide more support with creating your own resources, discovering and repurposing existing resources, and with the delivery of your cascade training programme.

The aims of the workshops are to develop the skills and knowledge that the core programme introduced and, for those involved in early eGuide Training, to extend and refresh skills.

You can select one of four options as the main content of your workshop:

1. E-assessment: this option looks at different approaches to e-assessment including e-portfolios and will support participants in developing an outline for a basic e-portfolio.
2. Learning Platforms: this option will look at the features of a learning platform and participants will consider how to plan and implement the effective use of a learning environment.
3. Mobile Technologies: this option looks at the variety of mobile technologies available, and the potential for using them to enhance teaching and learning.
4. Online learning tools: this option looks at the variety of online learning tools available, including Web 2.0 technologies, and ways they can be used to enhance the learner journey.

Note: The materials and activities for these options are designed for self-study and/or work in small groups. There is also time to focus on creating or developing relevant and appropriate resources.

The workshops also offer an opportunity to share experiences and good practice with other E-Guides and consider how to incorporate new ideas into your cascade training.

Don't miss out: please complete the attached booking form stating your preferred option.

For maximum benefit from this training, you are advised to come to the workshops with ideas, and/or resources currently used, for schemes of work, lesson or session plans, learning tasks and activities which you would like to enhance with an ‘e' approach relevant to your chosen optional topic.

• The E-Guides Plus workshops are designed for participants who have previously undertaken some e-learning training.
• This may include staff who have been trained through the E-Guides cascade training programme within an organisation.

Candidates undertaking the Certificate in Educational Use of ICT qualification will be able to undertake the controlled assessment task (one hour) at the workshops.

Either Colin or John or both, eLearning Advisers from the RSC-Northwest will be present at the Northwest Workshops, offering both support and an opportunity for peer networking.

The day will start at 9:30 am and finish at 5:00 pm.

If the date above is not suitable you can attend other workshops across England...

2008

• 15th January Leicester (RSC East Midlands)
• 16th January St Neots (RSC Eastern)
• 5th February Birmingham (RSC West Midlands)
• 1st February (RSC-Northwest)
• 7th February Taunton (RSC-South West)
• 22nd April Newcastle (RSC Northern)
• 23rd May Leeds (RSC Yorkshire & Humber)
• 29th May Birmingham (RSC West Midlands)
• 3rd June Liverpool (RSC-Northwest)
• 6th June London (RSC-London)

Events begin from October 2nd in London. Maximum of 20 participants per event.

You can access the schedule at http://www.niace.org.uk/Conferences/TrainingCourses/eguides.htm#Schedule

• Materials have been updated
  - core remains the same. E-Guides are given contact details for RSCs and names of ACL and WBL Advisors (known at time of going to press).

• Action plans:
  E-Guides not currently likely to receive a grant, but nevertheless the cascade is expected and ongoing membership of the E-Guides mail list (managed by Becta) and E-Guides network area on Moodle is encouraged.

• Accreditation will be offered during this phase.
  Certificate in Educational Use of ICT - JEB Level 3.
  This requires assessment in controlled conditions as previously.
  There will be three ‘accreditation workshops' next year.
  
  
• E-Guides Plus:
  13 of these events are planned throughout the country.
  Funds are tight and we are hoping to recruit in greater numbers - maximum of 20 per event.
  E-Guides Plus will be open to
  
  • all trained E-Guides
    
  • and staff who have received some e-learning cascade training.
    

There are four E-Guides Plus topics to choose from:

• Online learning tools (incl. social networking)
• Mobile Technologies
• Learning Platforms
• E-assessment

Materials are currently being written for self-study at the workshops. However, it is planned that each topic will also include a focus on creating appropriate and relevant content, and a consideration of the topic in relation to cascade training.
Trainers will be seeking to encourage group interaction, even though participants will be able to follow their own choice of topic to study.

Attendance at the E-Guides core three days, and two E-Guides Plus would therefore add up to 30 hours CPD.

E-Guides materials have been (loosely) mapped to ePD framework.

E-Guides National Event 2008

Thursday March 13th in Manchester.
One-day event with focus on implementation of online and blended learning.
Details and programme will be released in November.
Further details available at http://www.niace.org.uk/Conferences/TrainingCourses/eguidesnatevent08.htm .

Note: There will be a substantial cost to this event, but a bursary programme will enable eligible participants to attend if their organisation cannot afford to send them.

Opening up the debate - work with parents, carers and families

Venue: Holiday Inn, 129 St. Nicholas Circle, Leicester LE1 5LX

Background

The family is centre stage of many current policy agendas and this is an exciting time to expand our understanding about the wider benefits of learning as a family and in a family and how we can capture and define these benefits in a meaningful way to influence policy, research and practice.

NIACE and the Family Learning Local Authority Group (FLLAG) are please to invite you to join us at the very first Building Family Capital conference where we will open the debate on what constitutes family capital in current policy, practice and research arenas.

This conference will bring together the unique range of skills and expertise of academics, policy makers and practitioners. It provides the opportunity to link and discuss the range of mechanisms, processes and interventions that create and sustain family capital. Our combined challenge is to share research and practice evidence to influence thinking across the departmental and agency boundaries.

The conference will cover the following themes:

• Building Family Capital- Intergenerational Learning
• Expanding research methodologies in work with parents and carers
• Rethinking engaging and involving parents and carers
• Diversity and home literacy practices
• Capturing the value of social confidence
• Developing Family Citizenship
• Challenges of linking theory and practice

The conference will be of particular interest to:

• Academics
• Family Learning research students
• Family Learning and parenting practitioners
• Councillors
• Policy makers

and staff from:

• Voluntary and Community Sector
• Learning and Skills Councils
• Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills
• Department for Children, Schools and Families
• Lifelong Learning UK
• Extended Services
• Training and Development Agency
• National organisations e.g. Parenting UK, National Family and Parenting Institute
• Prisons
• Probation Services
• Youth Offending Institutions and Prisons

For further details and to reserve a place, look up: http://www.niace.org.uk/Conferences/familycapital.htm

Enquiries to Gurjit Kaur on 0116 204 2833; e-mail: gurjit.kaur@niace.org.uk
 

Build your confidence

If you are a manager, team leader or considering moving into a leadership role don't miss this opportunity.

Healthy and balanced organisations are ones where leadership is courageous, the vision for the future is clear and everyone can contribute to improving results. We are pleased to announce one-day courses run by Trainer and Coach - Annette Zera, previously Principal of Tower Hamlets College, which will help expand your leadership and management skills and challenge the way you think about engaging staff.

Getting on Brilliantly 1

Getting the best out of groups and teams
Tuesday 29 January 2008
MAC Arts, Cannon Hill Park, Birmingham B12 9QH

Participants on this course will:

• think about how to get the best out of groups and teams
• try out some different ways of running meetings
• get some practical ideas that make a difference
• think about how to encourage people to express their passion for what they do
• discuss key leadership and management issues and approaches
• reflect on how they might do things differently
• challenge some received wisdom.

Build your confidence

If you are a manager, team leader or considering moving into a leadership role don't miss this opportunity.

Healthy and balanced organisations are ones where leadership is courageous, the vision for the future is clear and everyone can contribute to improving results. We are pleased to announce one-day courses run by Trainer and Coach - Annette Zera, previously Principal of Tower Hamlets College, which will help expand your leadership and management skills and challenge the way you think about engaging staff.

Getting on Brilliantly 2

Getting the best out of line management - How do we get the best out of people and enjoy being a line manager?
Wednesday 30 January 2008
MAC Arts, Cannon Hill Park, Birmingham B12 9QH

This one-day training session will expand your leadership and management skills and confidence. You will work on different ways of engaging with staff and learners; approaches that are efficient, effective and energising and used in the most innovative and successful of organisations.

Participants on this course will:

• think about how they choose people
• focus on how they use their time
• consider different ways of doing things
• reflect on how best to give and receive criticism
• consider how people in the wrong job can leave with dignity
• sharpen systems and procedures to expedite rather than protract difficulties
• challenge some received wisdom.

There are 40 places per course.
Fee: £245 pp per course includes tea/coffee, lunch and support materials

Arrival/Registration is at 9.30am for a 10.00am start. Sessions end at 4.00pm

If you would like to reserve a place on the above courses visit the NIACE website: http://www.niace.org.uk/Conferences/TrainingCourses.htm

Enquiries to: Gurjit Kaur on Tel: 0116 2042833
Email: gurjit.kaur@niace.org.uk

Date: Thursday 14 February 2008

Venue: Chancellors Hotel, Chancellors Way, Moseley Road, Manchester M14 6NN

This conference will enable people involved in developing awards and provision within the Qualifications and Credit Framework to learn from some of the history of credit systems and to relate this history to their own current activities.

Audience

The conference will be of interest to:

• those currently involved in developing the Qualifications and Credit Framework (QCF)
• those previously involved in credit systems
• people working in Awarding Bodies and Sector Bodies
• providers who are beginning their involvement with the Qualifications and Credit Framework (QCF) through the 'Fast Track' arrangements for the new Framework
• providers who are developing new programmes or awards within the Qualifications and Credit Framework (QCF) for delivery in 2008.

Registration: 9.45am
Start: 10:15am
End: 3:45pm
Fee: £198 (includes lunch, tea/coffee)

NB: NIACE does not charge VAT on conference and course fees

For more information on this conference please read below or download a copy of the conference programme from:

http://www.niace.org.uk/Conferences/creditsystems.htm

Tel: 0116 204 2833
E-mail: gurjit.kaur@niace.org.uk

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Background

It is now almost 25 years since the first learners were awarded credits by the Manchester Open College Federation - the forerunner of all Open College Networks (OCNs) and the precursor for the credit systems of the 21st century.

This conference brings together some of the early pioneers of credit systems within Manchester and other OCNs, with some of the people currently involved in developing the new Qualifications and Credit Framework (QCF) which will become fully operational in 2008.

Purpose

The conference will not only trace the continuity of this development over time, it will also bring key actors from both the past and the present together in one place to compare experiences across these 25 years. It will enable people involved in developing awards and provision within the QCF to learn from some of the history of credit systems, and to relate this history to their own current activities. The achievements of learners in the QCF will also be celebrated as well as the achievements of some of these 'credit pioneers'.

Date: Tuesday 15th April 2007

Venue: International Convention Centre, Birmingham

JISC is delighted to announce that registration for the JISC Conference 2008 is now open!

Following on from the success of 2007 we are confident that 2008 will be another successful year for the JISC Conference. The 2007 conference attracted over 700 senior managers, practitioners, and support staff involved in the use of Information and Communications Technology in further and higher education and research. We are expecting the 2008 conference to be even more popular so make sure that you get signed up as soon as possible!

The conference programme will be built on the theme of ‘Enabling Innovation' with a variety of interesting workshop sessions. We are pleased to confirm Lord Puttnam (Chancellor of the Open University) and Angela Beesley (Vice President Community Relations & Co-Founder, Wikia / Chair of Wikimedia Foundation Advisory Board) as the conference keynote speakers. The conference will reflect the breadth of JISC activities in providing guidance, advice and opportunities for the use of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) in education and research.

Delegates will be given opportunities to learn about the full range of JISC's work by participating in seminars, debates, workshops and demonstrations. In the exhibition area, a range of JISC services as well as corporate companies, agencies and associations will be able to provide you with advice and guidance on a range of support and resources available to your institution.
This one day event will be of interest to all those in post 16 and higher education and research involved in planning for and supporting the use of ICT, including:

• Senior managers and those responsible for developing and implementing policy and strategy

• Staff who play a role in supporting the use of ICT in educational organisations, including practitioners

• Teachers and researchers with an interest in the use of ICT

To view the draft conference programme and to book your place, please visit the JISC Conference 2008 website at: http://www.jisc.ac.uk/events/2008/04/jiscconference08.aspx

• Human Calendar
• Online Ribbon Generator
• SnapShots
• Why People Don't COmmunicate Well
  

QuickRibbon is a completely free Web2.0 tool, a website ribbon generator which lets you...

• create a custom ribbon,
  
• insert a link in it and
  
• place it in the top right corner of your website.
  

We are told that...

"It will take you less than 5 minutes to generate your own website ribbon with this trendy widget and add a stylish Web2.0 look to your page - it's quick, easy and fun."

The QuickRibbon tool could be used to attract your site's visitors attention to new courses, announcements, 'showcases', etc. Make your news stand out with a style.

Find out more and experiment at http://www.quickribbon.com/. 

Snap Shots a popular way to give your website users a more fun and interactive experience on your website or blog. Read more at http://www.snap.com/ . 

You'd be amazed at the number of learning providers that admit to employing the wrong medium for communicating information.

Choosing an appropriate communications medium is a basic "building block" of how we convey information.

This article informs us that...

"There is a 'more correct' communications medium that time and research has proven enhances the likelihood that what you are conveying will be received and acted upon in a timely manner."

Read more at http://kissaneasylum.typepad.com/workforce_development/2007/12/why-people-dont.html.

To...

• address the needs of individual learning providers ; managers, eGuides, ILT Champions, Curriculum Leaders, Learning Resource Managers, Staff development Leaders, etc.
  
• provide appropriate guidance with eLearning
• know someone actually reads the eMagazine ☺.
  

Viewers who accessed the eMagazine... (Note: - names emboldened are new)

• as a menu driven website came from...
  
  • Accrington, Aston, Barrow-in-Furness, Barry, Belfast, Billericay, Birkenhead, Blackburn, Blackpool, Bolton, Boothstown, Bootle, Bredbury, Bury, Cannock, Chester, Crewe, Crowthorne, Denmead, Derby, Heywood, Horsham, Huyton-with-Roby, Kendal, Kirklees, Knowsley, Lancaster, Leicester, Lincoln, Liverpool, London, Loughborough, Maghull, Maidenhead, Manchester, Milton Keynes, Nottingham, Oldham, Poole, Prenton, Renfrew, Rochdale, St Helens, Sale, Salford, Sefton, Slough, Stafford, Stalybridge, Stockport, Stoke on Trent, Uttoxeter, Walton-le-Dale, Warrington, Watford, Wembley, Widnes, Wigan, Wilmslow, Winsford, Wolverhampton, and Rochdale;
• as a Single webpage came from...
  • Aberdeen, Aylesbury, Barry, Belfast, Billingham, Birkenhead, Birmingham, Blackburn, Blackpool, Bolton, Bristol, Bury, Chester, Crewe, Derby, Droitwich, Ellesmere Port, Farnborough, Heywood, Hucknall, Hull, Irlam, Kendal, Kempston, Knowsley, Lancaster, Leicester, Lincoln, London, Loughborough, Macclesfield, Manchester, Newbury, Newcastle upon Tyne, Newport, Norwich, Poplar, Prenton, Rochdale, Salford, Sale, Shrewsbury, Slough, Stalybridge, Stockport, Southport, Sunderland, Walton-le-Dale, Wembley, Whitehaven, Winsford, Woking and Wolverhampton;
• via the Archive came from...
  • Abingdon, Accrington, Barrow-in-Furness, Barry, Belfast, Billericay, Billingham, Bolton, Boothstown, Bootle, Bury, Chorley, Cannock,Crewe, Crowthorpe, Croyden, Darlington, Ellesmere Port, Gateshead, Heywood, Hull, Huyton-with-Roby, Irlam, Kempston, Kirklees, Lancaster, Lincoln, Liverpool, London, Loughborough, Maghull, Manchester, Nottingham, Oldham, Penshaw, St Helens, Sale, Slough, Stalybridge, Stockport, Swindon, Thames Ditton, Wallington, Walton-le-Dale, Warrington, Wembley, Whitehaven, Widnes, Wolverhampton, and Wrexham;
  We also had viewers from...
  • Sydney Australia,
    
  • Changchun, Changzhou and Beijing China
    
  • Toulouse, France
    
  • Ahmedabad and New Delhi India,
    
  • Haifa Israel,
    
  • Shibuya and Tokyo Japan
  • Woerden Netherlands,
  • Batangas Philippines
  • Goteborg Sweeden
    
  • Ankara Turkey and
    
  • California, Florida, Minnesota, New York and Tennessee USA.
    

 

• 19th Century British Library newspapers
• CEL urges FE leaders...
• Disability Equality Scheme: Annual Report
• Do inmates get a good education?
• Eduspaces shuts down
• External Social Networking Sites...
• Hairdressing 'not just for girls'
• Higher education predictions for 2008
• Inspectors hail improvements to Young Apprenticeship scheme
• Learn as you earn' at your desk
• Ministers review physics funding
• Universities fear massive cash loss
• University review 2007
• Universities warn of higher fees
• V.A.D.S.
• 'Wasting Online Opportunities'
• Will Learning Simulations Be Our Future?
  

JISC and the British Library , in partnership with Gale/Cengage Learning , have launched their 19th century British Library Newspapers website.

The UK’s Further and Higher Education communities can now enjoy free online access to a cross section of 19th century national and regional titles, greatly enhancing research into the society, culture and history of the UK between 1800-1900.

HE and FE lecturers will be able to download material from the website and use it for teaching purposes.

Find out more at http://gale.cengage.co.uk/britishlibrarynewspapers/ . 

 

The Centre for Excellence in Leadership (CEL) is encouraging leaders, managers and staff in the further education sector to participate in a consultation about the creation of a new sector-owned organisation. This follows the recent announcement by John Denham, Secretary of State at the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills, that a new organisation would be formed by the coming together of CEL and the Quality Improvement Agency (QIA).

The consultation document has been published on the DIUS website, http://www.dius.gov.uk/consultations/con_1107_feimprovement.html , and those who lead and work in the sector are invited to help shape and steer the new organisation by contributing their views.

Deadline for responses is Friday 25 January 2008

Universities and colleges will have published their annual report demonstrating the progress they have made on disability equality since publishing their original Disability Equality Scheme (DES).

Note: - This should have been done by 4 December 2007!

The intention of the annual report is to both monitor and demonstrate progress against the DES action plan, to give evidence of continuing commitment towards eliminating discrimination and to show how information gathered over the last year will be used to inform future actions for further developing the DES.

A number of Guidance Publications are available from the Equality Challenge Unit .

Ed Balls is set to use this month's publication of the Children's Plan to elaborate on a major shake-up of prison education. In a historic move, the secretary of state for Children, Schools and Families wants to give local authorities responsibility for custodial learning, taking it away from the proliferation of piecemeal providers that currently supply the service.

Read more at http://education.guardian.co.uk/further/story/0,,2225310,00.html?gusrc=rss&feed=8. 

 

"We would like to inform all users of EduSpaces that we will be shutting down the service on Jan 10th, 2008.

We have provided a mechanism for you to export all your blog posts in either an RSS format or HTML. To do this, go to your blog and select the submenu option you require. For those of you with files, you might want to download those as well.

Thank you to everyone who has supported EduSpaces over the last three years.

Best regards,"

The EduSpaces team

 

Learning providers considering (or already using) external social networking sites in a work related capacity in teaching and learning, or in communicating with students will be interested in the report that the Information Commissioner is to investigate a complaint regarding the retention of personal data on servers of a well known social networking site.

This story highlights a concern that the level of privacy and data protection offered by some social networking sites may not always match that provided by an institution’s own systems and staff should check that their use will not conflict with their institutional policies. Read more at http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/11/20/facebook_uk_data_protection/ .

Apprenticeships courses in areas such as hairdressing are not just for girls, and providers must do more to tackle gender stereotyping, Ofsted has said. Read more at http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/7144076.stm .

The furore caused by the government's decision to shift money away from people studying for an equivalent or lower qualification (ELQ) will undoubtedly rumble on into 2008, not least because the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills plans to "move the debate forward" early in the year. Read more at http://education.guardian.co.uk/higher/news/story/0,,2233685,00.html?gusrc=rss&feed=8 .

Inspectors have today praised improvements to the Young Apprenticeship (YA) scheme over the last three years, but said those involved need to do more to tackle "gender stereotyping".

Read more at http://education.guardian.co.uk/further/story/0,,2227791,00.html?gusrc=rss&feed=8 . 

Imagine a world where education came to you without you having to leave the office or factory where you work.

At the end of the course you gain a qualification which gives you not only a career boost but also valuable points towards a degree qualification.

Read more at http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/7041885.stm .

 

The government is to review its funding for physics after scientists warned of an £80m research shortfall.Read more at http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/7137387.stm .

Universities will lose tens of millions of pounds in funding when tough new immigration laws are introduced next year, according to the man who represents the UK's vice-chancellors.

Read more at http://education.guardian.co.uk/universityfunding/story/0,,2228794,00.html?gusrc=rss&feed=8 . 

...which included a visa victory for international students, a proposed boycott of Israeli academics' work and the launch of GuardianResearch. Read more at http://education.guardian.co.uk/higher/news/story/0,,2231279,00.html?gusrc=rss&feed=8 .

Thousands of students will face increased tuition fees of more than £7,000 a year as a result of funding cuts, universities have warned. Read more at http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/7164699.stm .

The Visual Arts Data Service, http://www.vads.ahds.ac.uk/ , has launched a new database of nearly 8,000 European oil paintings.

NICE Paintings, http://www.vads.ahds.ac.uk/collections/NIRP/index.php , (The National Inventory of Continental European Paintings) is a collection of pre-1900 oil paintings housed in Britain's public art collections.

View further information at http://www.vads.ahds.ac.uk/news/nirp_news.html . 

Some 40% of junior managers are likely to use e-learning tools, compared with around 35% of middle managers, just over 30% of senior managers and around 22% of directors, the research finds.

Similar patterns were detected in the use of blogs and social networking sites, albeit at lower overall levels of usage. The only two areas where directors and senior managers show higher usage than middle and junior management were online video and online audio tools such as podcasting, the research found.

Read more at http://www.headstar.com/egblive/?p=69  

Or go to the Publications Section of this eMagazine to download a pdf copy.

An IDC survey stated that

"by 2008 the use of simulations will quadruple.... Simulations provide a parallel universe in which employees hone their skills... Innovative companies have realized this, and others will follow."

Since the early 50’s the use of gaming/simulation has become increasingly important to training and decision-making processes in academic, business, military, and social settings.  Yet it has been only in the last few years that technology has been able to advance the state-of-the-art with more automated simulations technology.

Read more at http://kissaneasylum.typepad.com/workforce_development/2007/12/will-learning-s.html . 

• Mark Jenkins from Priestley College talks about their experiences of using Google Apps.
  Priestley College are using Google Apps with students. This is a service which utilises applications such as Google Docs, Google Spreadsheets, Google Calendar and Gmail in a manageable environment. Mark Jenkins explains how this service has been used, along with tips and tricks.

Listen at

http://www.garageband.com/mp3/Google_Apps.mp3?|pe1|WdjZPXLrvP2raFm_ZWFh

• British Journal of Higher Education in Further Education
• BT: Free Resources Catalogue
• Digital Images in Education (JISC Collections)
• eLearning Guild
• eLearning Handbook
• JISC: TrustDR project
  
• Realising Value from Online Learning in Management Development (October 2007)

The online publication – The British Journal of Higher Education in Further Education (BJHEinFE) – aims to meet the needs of those working in the HE in FE sector, which is rapidly expanding due to the growing numbers of foundation degrees delivered in FE colleges.

Read more on our website at http://www.rsc-northwest.ac.uk/content/view/483/2/ or go to http://www.bjheinfe.org/index.php/bjheinfe .

BJHEinFE recognises that some practitioners may not have published work before but welcome first submissions and offer feedback, support and guidance to encourage contributors to publish.

A guidance sheet can be downloaded from http://bjheinfe.org/downloads/BJHEinFE%20info%20sheet.pdf . 

The book Digital Images in Education: Realising the Vision provides a comprehensive view of the digital image landscape by setting out:

• the vision, its background and progress towards its realisation
• digital image creation, use and management in and beyond UK education
• a summary of the findings from a series of reports commissioned by JISC to examine different aspects of the provision of images for use in education

Read more on our website at http://www.rsc-northwest.ac.uk/content/view/482/2/ or download the complete version of this book in pdf format at http://www.jisc-collections.ac.uk/media/documents/jisc_collections/images_book_final_med.pdf .

 

The eLearning Guild asked members for their favorite tips for using software for the creation of e-Learning. Members could submit tips in any or all of the following five categories:

• Courseware authoring and e-Learning development tools
• Rapid e-Learning tools
• Simulation tools
• Media tools
• Combining and deploying authoring tools

Find out more and download the resulting publication at http://www.elearningguild.com/content.cfm?selection=doc.896 .

 

This eLearning Handbook (which has grown out of their previous Guide to Learning Tools) provides an introduction to

• e-learning trends,
  
• technologies and tools and
  
• how to create learning solutions quickly and easily. 
  

It is a work in progress, so is being updated all the time!

Currently contains 6 parts each comprising a number of Topics.  The 6 parts are

• The trends
• Managing your own learning
• Creating informational and performance support materials
• Creating and delivering presentations
• Creating formal learning solutions
• Connecting people
  

Each Topic provides links to examples, resources and (separately accessble) reading lists. Find out more at http://c4lpt.co.uk/handbook/index.html .

Managing Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) in Digital Learning Materials: A Development Pack for Institutional Repositories

Authors: John Casey, Jackie Proven & David Dripps

Distributed under a Creative Commons License - Attribution 2.5 UK: Scotland

Download from: http://trustdr.ulster.ac.uk/outputs.php

The pack is aimed at those who are setting up or running digital collections of learning materials that are managed at an institutional level. It is written in a clear and straightforward style that sets out to persuade the reader of the benefits of engaging with the issues associated with IPR in e-learning. The approach taken is based on the idea that the organisation of an IPR policy in e-learning should reflect and support the educational activity instead of hinder it - and that means understanding ‘the business of e-learning'. To do this it paints a compelling picture of an educational sector in the process of changing from traditional ad-hoc models of teaching to a more sustainable, team-based model - driven by increased student numbers, a greater focus on learners needs, and increased requirements for flexible delivery with the increasing use of digital media and technologies.

The pack is useful and unusual in that it situates its analysis and advice specifically in the highly relevant context of the professional and institutional process change that is required to introduce and extend flexible learning opportunities in our education systems - a common scenario that raises many IPR challenges. It surveys the current confused and contradictory practises in UK education and suggests that these practices reflect a situation where e-learning is not yet effectively integrated into our institutions. It also highlights a lack of involvement and leadership by senior management.

The authors argue strongly that sorting out the IPR policy for e-learning can be a way of getting senior management to engage more effectively with the educational and organisational changes that are needed to make e-learning work. Clarifying IPR policy therefore becomes an enabler for best practice. Looked at in this light - to be able to account for the provenance of content in e-learning materials is really a matter of individual academic integrity and for institutional quality control. Another central argument deals with the relative values of teaching activity by humans and the role of learning materials content, and again the pack promotes the development of policies that properly reflect these values.

The format of the development pack is a central document of about 70 pages linked to other resources; it is designed to allow the reader to dip in and out or to explore themes in greater depth. The pack functions both as a personal training manual and as an organisational development tool, it includes:

• A Beginners guide to IPR in e-learning
• Discussion of the pros and cons of using Creative Commons licences
• Useful of tools to help analyse your situation and development needs
• A collection of common IPR mistakes made by institutions
• Overview of the relevant technical factors
• An introduction and guide to Risk Management
• Discussion of the kinds business models associated with the use of creative commons licences
• Understanding and assessing the value of learning materials
• A practical guide to implementing flexible learning (published by the QAA)
• Tools for understanding and modelling organisational and professional change
• Policy discussion and development documents for use at institutional and national levels
• Scenarios/ case studies

The TrustDR (Trust in Digital Repositories) project was charged with developing practical solutions to the problem of managing IPR in collections of digital learning materials. The work was carried out between 2005 and 2007 and was led by Ulster University, Northern Ireland, in collaboration with the UHI Millennium Institute, Scotland. The project website can be found at: http://trustdr.ulster.ac.uk/

Best Wishes

John Casey
Project Manager TrustDR project
john.casey@ed.ac.uk

A new report based on a survey of 998 managers and a series of in-depth employer interviews on the use of online resources to support managers' learning.

Published: October 2007

Authors: Professor William Scott-Jackson, Terry Edney and Ceri Rushent

Recent years have seen a surge in the use of information and communications technology and its impact on the workplace and productivity. Yet the take-up of on-line learning has been remarkably slow, with companies reporting a disinclination among employees to use on-line learning packages and too many providers offering expensive learning management systems with little tailoring to the organisations’ needs.

The report presents the findings of a survey of 998 individual managers, in-depth interviews with 12 major public companies, a public sector employer and a charity, and interviews with three suppliers of on-line learning.

The research found that online learning is now well established, particularly where employers need to distribute knowledge to large numbers of employees, especially if they are geographically dispersed. The increase in compliance training has been a major driver for on-line learning. However, it remains the case that only a small proportion of management training is conducted on-line and most organisations do not see unsupported on-line learning as suitable for soft skill training.

• 4096 Color Wheel
• Academic Database Assessment Tool
• Bring the world into the classroom
• Drawing Tutorials
• Find Sounds
• Functional Skills
• "Know IT All"
• Learning in Hand
• Music Theory
• The Meaning of Colours
• ThemeGurus
• Web 2.0 Colour Palette
  

Go to http://www.ficml.org/jemimap/style/color/wheel.html and...

Hover over the square to change saturation (left to right) and value (bottom to top) of the last hue. Use the keyboard to rotate hue. Jump to a primary or secondary color: red, green, blue, cyan, magenta, or yellow. The enter key will also add the current color to the pick list.

JISC Collections, in partnership with DataSalon Ltd, launched a free online database comparison tool on the 21st November, which aims to help libraries make informed decisions about future subscriptions to online resources – the Academic Database Assessment Tool.

With so many products offering a huge diversity and wealth of information, it can be difficult for librarians to know what resources they should be investing in. The Academic Database Assessment Tool provides access to detailed information and title lists for major bibliographic and full text databases.  It also delivers key service information for database and eBook content platforms. This enables librarians to quickly compare and contrast key items to assist in the purchase decision process. 

Find out more by going to http://www.jisc-adat.com/adat/home.pl . 

 

Learner expectations depend on their experiences in previous learning environments; ignore what is happening in schools to our peril!

The Google UK Schools Site offers free resources for teachers to help use Google tools in the classroom.

Working with teachers, Google have developed ideas for how Google Search, Maps, Earth, Images and News can be integrated into the curriculum to help bring subjects such as geography, history and citizenship to life.

Find out more at http://www.google.co.uk/schools/index.html. 

Could you uses these free resources yourself or within family learning for example?

 

Chord Book has many features, the most immediately useful of which for learners is an online tuner. Here you can click R (for repeat) for each string and hear the note for as long as you need.

In addition to standard tuning, it also features 7 altered tunings and the option to create your own by altering the virtual pegs. At any point, you can click strum to hear how your creation will sound.

Other features include...

• chords,
  
• scales and
  
• some backing tracks for jamming.
  

Note: the virtual guitar neck can be reoriented for left-hand players.

From the home page, you can also access some video lessons.

Go to http://www.chordbook.com/index.php , to find out more for yourself. 

 

1

“This is tutorial on how to draw the female body. Be warned that there is some nudity, though trust me, it is extremely mild. ^_^ If it bothers you that much, just pretend they are wearing skin tight body suits. Also be warned that I am no expert on figure drawing. This is a brief overview meant to familiarize beginning and amateur artists with basic anatomy. ” Read more at http://www.cablenet.ne.jp/~japanime/tutorial/fbodymain.html. You may also find some useful drawing tips in Tips-n-Tricks this month.

2

There is probably no task or subject that appears more intimidating and complex than trying to draw the live human figure. As all artists young and old know, there is almost too much to consider. Where do you start your drawing of the human figure from life? Find out more at http://www.dangheno.net/pteachingspg1.htm.

FindSounds.com, http://www.findsounds.com/ , is a free site for finding sound effects and musical instrument samples on the Web.

• It is a Web search engine, like Google and AltaVista, but with a focus on sounds.
  
• It provides powerful features, yet is simple and easy to use, and suitable for all ages.
  

Note to Family Learning Tutors/parents: audio files containing obscenities are filtered out so this site is safe for children.

To learn how to search the Web using FindSounds.com, visit the Help page at http://www.findsounds.com/help1.html .

 

The North West Learning Grid have created some explanations and also some resources around Functional Skills for TEACHERS.

There are 2 sample ICT and 2 Maths objects that can be selected. Once within the objects there are some animations and games for students for each Functional Skills Unit sample.

Putting the FUN into functional skills is not proving to be so easy!

To access these resources go to http://www.nwlg.org/nwlg_products/functional_skills/content/home/index.html

 

 

Recently Childnet has also produced a special interactive resource for parents called ‘Know IT All' . The Government has now made this available free of charge for all state schools in England. The content from this CD-ROM is also available online at http://www.childnet-int.org/kia . The video tutorials will really help you keep up to date with how your children are using the internet and applications such as Chat Rooms, Instant Messenger, Social Networking websites and Mobile Phones. There is lots of really helpful safety advice and a special section for kids too.

If you haven't got the time to look at all the material there is a Quick Overview which gives you a summary of the content.
This section has been translated into:

• English
• British Sign Language
• Arabic
• Mandarin
• Polish
• Gujarati
• Punjabi
• Bengali and
  
• Urdu.

I have included the http://www.childnet-int.org/ link in a previous eMagazine, but well worth another visit.

learninginhand.com is a resource for educators who use handhelds or are interested in what handhelds can do. You'll see that

"handhelds are small computers that can do big things for learning!"

Go to http://www.learninginhand.com/ to find out more.

Ricci Adams first envisioned Musictheory.net during his senior year of high school. Soon afterwards, he created his first lesson: The Staff, Clefs, and Ledger Lines. The Interval Ear Trainer was developed a few weeks later and the site officially launched on January 1, 2000. Since that date, he has authored over thirty new lessons and several new trainers. 

There may be a need, I'm told, to prepare/provide some introductory material to smooth over the differences in UK and US nomenclature.

Find out more at http://www.musictheory.net/index.html. 

For most of us, a rainbow of colours envelopes our lives. Over 80% of visual information is related to colour. What colours and combinations of colours stimulate people to be interested in different things? What colours make us feel pleasure or disapproval, hot or cold, to be attracted or repelled, our appetite stimulated or suppressed? Find out more at http://www.sibagraphics.com/colour.php .

ThemeGurus provides themes for open source software like Moodle, Joomla and Dokeos.  Some are free, but you can also sign up for membership to the ThemeGurus Club for more. 

Take a look at http://themegurus.com/. 

Now you can quickly and easily assemble your own colour scheme - simply choose any number of bold or muted colours, then add as many neutrals as you see fit - you'll have a Web2.0 masterpiece in no time at all! Find out more at http://www.modernlifeisrubbish.co.uk/article/web-2.0-colour-palette.

• beFunky
• EditGrid
• Graphita
• HD Quality Web Video and Audio Now Available
• i-Lighter
• Online: Buzzword
• Online: gabCast
• OpenOffice goes online
• The Ultimate Steal!
• YouTube Catcher
• Word Magnets

With beFunky you can take any of your photographs and turn it into a cartoon like drawing.

You can either convert it...

• into a black and white sketch drawing or
  
• into a colorful animated painting.

Find out more at http://www.befunky.com/index.php .

EditGrid brings your spreadsheets online. Your spreadsheets now deliver more value. You can collaborate with your learners/colleagues, share or publish spreadsheets, and even power them with external data.

• Spreadsheet - easy to use, installation-free spreadsheet application
• Web - accessible to learners anytime anyplace
• Collaboration - parallel editing and shared workspaces for multi-learner environment
• Publish - spreadsheets readily publishable for websites, blogs and ePortfolio inclusion.
  

 

Find out more by visiting http://www.editgrid.com/.

Graphita is a quick online application that lets you add some fun to photographs by using captions, funny objects, speech bubbles, notes, doodles and more. All of this in an intuitive drag-n-drop interface. Ideal for Family Learning perhaps?

Find out more at http://www.graphita.com/ .

Adobe has released a Flash Player 9 update, http://www.adobe.com/aboutadobe/pressroom/pressreleases/200712/120407adobemoviestar.html, that is now supporting HD quality web video and audio playback! Download it Here http://www.adobe.com/products/flashplayer/.

An ideal tool to help learners and teachers alike when searching the internet.

1. Highlight text and images and i-Ligher automatically saves it to your i-Lighter
account! Add comments (iNotes) anywhere you i-Light

2. Organize your stuff as you i-Light.

3. Notebooks is an exciting tool that allows you to take your i-lighted content ,
edit, format and create documents, reports, term papers...whatever you want.

More details and Free download at http://www.i-lighter.com/ .

"I've registered and have found it very useful already!" John Dalziel (eLearning Adviser (ACL/PCDL))

 

Adobe has also entered the bustling online word-processing market by bringing out Buzzword, http://www.buzzword.com. What makes this different though from all the rest is that :

• It's Flash-based.
• It's a simple eye-pleasing design (and it is remarkably easy to use).
• Buzzword is not tied to one particular operating system. So you can use this on both Windows PC's and Macs.
• Nothing to install. All you need is Adobe Flash Player (which is normally installed on computers anyway).

After registering for an account, you are taken to the main screen extremely quickly. After choosing a new document, you can start to write something.

The menus, being flash-based, open very quickly and smoothly. 

Adobe has hidden the features, they are tucked away in the flash menus!

Just click on one of the buttons and it will slide across the top of the screen, showing you the features inside : such as...

• Automatic word count - as you type, there is a constantly updating word count going on in the bottom right hand corner. Good for writers who have to keep to a certain word count.
• Zoom in and out - using a slider, you can zoom in and out of the document, making things bigger or smaller.
• Special characters - you can insert lots of special characters into your document such as the German umlaut.
• Uploading images and comments - you can insert images and comments into a document.
• Document sharing - you can make the document private or you can share it with others.

You can find more in-depth information on Buzzword by going to the Buzzword Help page at http://www.buzzword.com/help/index.html .

If you are looking for a simple straight-forward online word processor then Buzzword is an excellent option.

 

Gabcast.com is a podcasting and audioblogging platform that offers an easy way to create and distribute audio content. Most people will use a touch-tone telephone (mobile) to make their recordings but they also provide worldwide access to the service through VoIP. Once you have made a recording and have published it, a newsfeed is immediately and automatically updated to alert subscribers to your channel.

Find out more at http://www.gabcast.com .

Advisers from RSC Northwest can see huge educational potential in the use of gabcast.

• Learning providers can embed a flash audio player(s) into curriculum, course, pastoral or corporate website(s)/blog(s) and communicate with learners/colleagues etc.
• MFL Learners can submit oral homeworks/projects or use gabcast to submit audio for assessment ePortfolios
• Lecturers, teachers, trainers etc., can notify learners of deadlines,
• Learners can submit audio evidence directly to Internal and External verifiers
• Learners can practice communication skills and/or using VOIP can conduct Interviews etc.
• It can be used for peer assessment/reviews

and I'm sure you will think of much more.

And all of this using a mobile phone or VOIP

Take a look at our sandpit area http://www.gabcast.com/index.php?a=episodes&id=15932 . (Or should that be listen to?)

Ulteo is trialling the beta of Online OpenOffice.org, which makes the popular office program available through a browser.

The beta, http://www.ulteo.com/home/en/ooo?autolang=en ; which is open to the first 15,000 subscribers, offers access to the complete OpenOffice suite without any prior installation, and 1GB of free storage.

The suite includes collaboration capabilities, allowing multiple users to work on a shared document, with the changes tracked in real time.

Ulteo has high hopes for the software, citing the potential use by learning providers.

Taking OpenOffice online could help broaden adoption of the open-source office package.

 

I have just discovered a useful all-in-one tool for testing your website, blog or webpage (or someone else’s, a learner for example) for just about anything you can imagine!

Go to http://tester.jonasjohn.de/ to find out more, for yourself. 

Microsoft® Office Ultimate 2007 for just £38.95.

Do you qualify?

• You must hold a valid email address at a U.K. educational institution ending in .ac.uk (for example, leina@contoso.university.ac.uk
AND
• If you are a Further Education student, you must have at least 15 hours of scheduled contact time for your course
  

Also, you may be asked by Microsoft to provide proof of enrolment status (i.e. Student card). If you are unable to provide proof of enrolment, you will be required to pay the full retail price of Office Ultimate 2007 (approximate ERP £599.99)

Go to http://www.theultimatesteal.co.uk/ to find out more.

Youtube.com is a great place that allows you, your learners and colleagues to watch, upload and share videos on the internet. But YouTube doesn't allow you to download videos that you watch.

Now you can! YouTube Catcher allows you to download YouTube videos easy and fast!

To find out more go to http://www.youtubecatcher.com/ . 

This online fridge magnet and text tumbler tool has, like many online tools, already got my mind buzzing with the possibilities it has for teaching and learning (ESOL, Literacy, MFL, Family Learning, to name but four areas)...

• for writing,
  
• sentence and text rehearsal tasks and
  
• generating silly sentences on the interactive whiteboard.
  

I remember playing with the same sort of thing many years ago: Their, There and They're.

For more information and a 'play' go to http://www.xmleducation.co.uk/magnets.html .

• 56 distinct species of geek
• Get the Message
• MagMyPic
• Spock loves Linux, Vader is a Mac Daddy
• Voki
• Wake Up and Feed the Cat
  

Grab your learners/colleagues/family etc. attention with a Royal Navy email! Go to http://www.getthemessage.net/ to try it out! 

at http://www.potatoparade.co.uk/ . 

Fun website where you can turn photographs into cool magazine covers. Quite handy if you’re looking for a quick way to spice up your MySpace, Facebook, Friendster and/or other profile pages.

Look Dad! I'm on the cover of National Geographic.

Find out more and have a play at http://www.magmypic.com/

I'm sure this has many applications in both teaching and learning

A while back, a Guardian article was written by Charles Brooker, titled “I Hate Macs,” which included this intriguing presumption: “Sometimes you have to slap [a PC] to make it work properly, just like the Tardis (Doctor Who, incidentally, would definitely use a PC).” This got Jay Garmon thinking about into which desktop computing camp various science fiction characters would fall. So to see his list visit http://blogs.techrepublic.com.com/geekend/?p=524.

• 10 Tips for Navigating More Efficiently in Firefox
• How to draw: the female figure proportion
• Tips on avoiding hand and wrist pain while keyboarding
  

Although every care has been taken in the preparation of this eMagazine, no warranty is given by the author or the Regional Support Centre-Northwest as to the accuracy or completeness of the information contained within it and neither the authors nor the RSC-Northwest shall be responsible or liable for any errors or omissions.

Note:- you will find a separate menu of tips-n-tricks on the left, under the tips-n-tricks Main menu.

and we will attempt to answer them in future tips-n-tricks.

If you use Firefox all day, as I do, you may have mastered a few of the navigational tools it offers, but there are a lot of them under the hood. You can be faster and more efficient with the browser if you learn some easy ways to use your mouse and keyboard to navigate.

Read more at http://webworkerdaily.com/2007/12/06/10-tips-for-working-more-efficiently-in-firefox/ . 

This tutorial is basically aimed at beginners honing their drawing skills.

Body proportion is something a beginner should be aware of very early in his or her training, but most, including me during my starting years, have neglected knowing this knowledge until later on. Now I find that as a major no-no. This tutorial simply aims the reader to be more aware of human body proportions (specifically the female form) when he or she draws. Read more at http://www.farlowstudios.com/content/view/60/56/1/0/.

Also view Female Proportions by *artworkshop at http://artworkshop.deviantart.com/art/Female-Proportions-58350890.

"If you’re like me, you spend hours at the keyboard. You probably, though, don’t think of yourselves as classical pianists such as Andre Watts, Lang Lang or Phillipe Entremont. Nor do you likely equate your keyboarding with a Beethoven concerto. However, you may have experienced the pain that comes from such keyboarding. It’s no fun, and it can hurt your productivity. What’s worse, it can lead to serious and perhaps permanent injury" Read more about how to avoid hand and wrist pain at http://blogs.techrepublic.com.com/helpdesk/?p=139 .

We currently have, running on Auto-pilot, the January 2008's storyboard' of 3 video clips (Looping approximately every 21:14 min) The clips provide an overview of iPod in Education and Google Maps (beta) for mobile phones with internet access...

1. iPod Video overview Part 1 (10:22 min)
2. Google Maps for mobile with My Location (beta) (02:37 min)
3. iPod Education overview Part 2 (08:15 min)
   

Why not take a look yourself and go to http://www.rsc-northwest.ac.uk/acl/RSC_TV/index.html and watch the RSC-Northwest's TV channel

RSC-NW TV Channel, will aim...

...to provide news of...

funding,
current projects,
initiatives and examples of good practice in eLearning

...to offer ideas and support for the Higher Education, Further Education, Personal and Community Development Learning (ACL), 6th Form College, Work Based Learning and Specialist College Managers & Practitioners etc., that are supported by the RSC here in the Northwest.

...to produce videos of events and/or training and to show them...

...so that those who are unable to attend face-to-face events, will be able to experience martini learning (any time, any place...)

When you visit the TV Chanel, "Give it a little time to 'Fine Tune'"...

UK Viewers during December 2007

Good news, the number of viewers of RSC-NW TV is increasing; new viewers are in Bold Type. In the UK we have viewers from...

Atherton,
Aylesbury,
Barrow-in-Furness,
Basildon,
Bath,
Belfast,
Billingham,
Birkenhead,
Bolton,
Bootle,
Burton on Trent,
Burtonwood,
Bury,
Cannock,
Canterbury,
Chester,
Crewe,
Crowthorne,
Derby,
Evesham, Heywood, Hucknall, Huyton-with-Roby, Kearsley, Kendal, Kings Langley, Kirklees, Knowsley, Lancaster,Leeds, Leek, Liverpool, Loughborough, London, Macclesfield, Maidenhead, Manchester, Oldham, Poplar, St Helens, Sailsbury, Sale, Salford, Sefton, Sittingbourne, Solihull, Stalybridge, Stockport, Swindon, Teddington, Walton-le-Dale, Warrington, Watford, Wembley, Westhoughton and Widnes.

We also have viewers in India (New Delhi), Hungary (Szigetszentmiklos), Japan (Shinjuku), Netherlands (Panningen), Sudan (Khartoum), Taiwan (San-Ch'Ung), Turkey (Istanbul) and the USA (New York, Texas, Virginia, Washington). 

Manager...

Andrew Quarmby
Tel: 0152 493 802
aq@rsc-northwest.ac.uk

 

Administration...

Christine Hulme, Jackie Ainsworth and Rachel Wood
Tel: 0152 459 3797
Fax:0152 459 3798
admin@rsc-northwest.ac.uk

eLearning Advisers...

Chrissie Turkington (Learning Resources/Higher Education Colleges)
Tel: 0152 459 3801
ct@rsc-northwest.ac.uk

Colin Gallacher (Work Based Learning)
Tel: 0152 459 3801
cg@rsc-northwest.ac.uk

John Dalziel (Adult & Community Learning / Personal & Community Development Learning)
Tel: 0152 459 3801
jd@rsc-northwest.ac.uk

Keith Wilson (Technical)
Tel: 0152 459 3799
kwil@rsc-northwest.ac.uk

Kevin Hickey (Further Education/6^th Form Colleges)
Tel: 0152 459 3799
kh@rsc-northwest.ac.uk

Lisa Valentine (Specialist Colleges & Accessibility)
Tel: 0152 459 3799
lv@rsc-northwest.ac.uk

Events Coordinator...

Helen Metcalfe
hm@rsc-northwest.ac.uk

Support Desk...

Duty Adviser
Tel: 0152 459 3797
support@rsc-northwest.ac.uk

Address & Telephone/Fax Numbers...

Joint Information Systems Committee (JISC)
Regional Support Centre - Northwest
Lancaster University
Bailrigg House
Lancaster University Campus
Lancaster LA1 4YE

Tel: 01524 593 797
Fax: 01524 593 798

Web Address (URL)...

http://www.rsc-northwest.ac.uk