Welcome back to the new session and to the first edition of NewsFeed for 2005-6. As always, we aim to keep you up to date with news of the latest developments in Internet and Communications Technology and how these are likely to affect teaching and learning. With each issue we try to find something to suit every taste and this one is no different.
As always, we welcome feedback on NewsFeed (or any RSC service you may have used) through the RSC website.
The sudden death of Robin Cook MP has caused particularly sadness at Oatridge College, which was in his Livingston Parliamentary constituency. College Principal David James says: "Mr Cook was a keen horseman and devotee of horseracing, and was a great supporter of our plans to create the Scottish Equestrian Performance Centre on the campus, which he described as ‘A great facility for the Scottish economy.’ Only recently he cut the first sod to begin construction of new all weather gallops for the Scottish Racing Academy. His untimely death seems to us like the loss a good friend."
The JISC Plagiarism Advisory Service, which provides advice and guidance on all aspects of plagiarism prevention and detection, has announced new plans for 2005-2006: the launch of course materials for students and academics on plagiarism, institutional plagiarism audits and national plagiarism awareness seminars. The new developments are a response to feedback from a survey on plagiarism conducted in November 2004. Nearly two thirds of UK HE Institutions responded and nearly all recognised plagiarism as a problem. For full details go to the JISC website.
The JISC Collections is the generic term for a wide range of online materials suitable for Further and Higher Education, which are being assembled by the JISC. Latest news about the collections.
The latest version of The British Universities Film & Video Council News contains all the latest news and resources in moving images from the JISC.
The BUFVC, in partnership with ITN and Reuters, is also involved in managing Newsfilm Online, a unique JISC-funded £2.8 million project digitising ITN and Reuters news archives. Eventually, up to 3,000 hours of film archives will be made available as part of the project. Read a progress report on Newsfilm Online by Project Manager Jeff Hulbert.
As the Edinburgh Book Festival 2005 gets under way in Charlotte Square you can experience the pleasures of a good read by virtually visiting the park courtesy of Scottish Readers.net. This highly visual website is jointly supported by CILIPS (The Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals in Scotland) and the Scottish Library and Information Council with different sections of the park focusing on different aspects of books and reading in Scotland. If you can’t make it to Edinburgh for the festival then Scottish Reader.net might be the next best thing.
The web – just ten years old at the time of writing – is a fantastic resource, but how do you know whether something you read in cyberspace is 'true'? Well the answer is you can't know with absolute certainty. This makes it important to read carefully and to evaluate what you read. For an interesting guide to this whole subject and some advice on how to evaluate websites, try looking at this online guide to evaluation websites.
And now some information on a new JISC Collection, the History E-Book Project (HEB). All Further and Higher Education Institutions around the country now have the opportunity to offer their staff and students access to an online, fully searchable selection of high quality books in the field of history, recommended and reviewed by historians – the History E-Book Project. With the HEB users can tap into a rich collection of over 1000 titles, with over 250 titles new titles being added each year.
To take advantage of a no-obligation 30 day free trial, send a message to trial_access@jisc.ac.uk and include HEB in the subject line of your email. Full subscription and pricing details can be found at History Ebook section of the JISC website.
Metadata is the foundation of efficient and effective information management, web content management and records management. 'Making Sense of Metadata' will take place at Glasgow Metropolitan College on 29th September 2005. It's designed to introduce the concepts and terminology of metadata and encourage understanding of its use in knowledge management. The event is aimed at anyone interested in learning more about metadata and its application and will be non-technical, providing an overview of metadata concepts and practical examples. Attendance at the event costs £50 (members) £75 (non members) to include lunch and refreshments. Booking is open now via the online form on the SLAINTE website.
"Ipsa scientia potestas est" or "Knowledge is power", said Francis Bacon In the 16th century. In the 21st century knowledge is empowerment, and, for the first time, whatever you want to know about is probably out there somewhere – probably for free. Last week marked a decade since the explosive stock market debut of Netscape, which triggered the dot.com boom, unleashed a friendly browser to navigate the web and opened the door to that store of knowledge. Read the full story online.
Geographers (don't you just get fed up that there's so much for geographers?), Google have released another Beta freebie: Google Earth, the basic package lets you fly around a 3D globe, with overhead satellite photos, tilted 45-degree photos, 3D rendered buildings.
And is if that wasn’t enough, have a look at the new Google Maps facility. Geographers land lucky once again…
According to the Scottish Household Survey 2003-2004, released on 4th August, internet access has continued to increase from 41 per cent in 2003 to 43 per cent of Scottish households in 2004.
Over last session we featured 'blogs' and 'blogging', the homepages of the 21st Century. They are free and easy to set up and use and are popular with people who want to share thoughts online. The 'blogosphere' is continuing to grow, with a weblog created every second and there is increasing interest in the use of blogs in education. For general information on blogging read this BBC article.
For how it can be used in an educational context check out Blogs in Education.
Essex Police staff are being urged not to send e-mails on Wednesdays in an attempt by the new chief constable to make people talk to each other. The request by Roger Baker to make one day a week e-mail free was recently posted on the force's intranet site. The chief Constable has requested that on Wednesdays until further notice, e-mails should only be used where "urgent or strictly necessary". Instead Mr Baker wanted his staff to pick up the phone or walk along corridors and communicate face-to-face.
Read the full BBC article online.
If you're up to date, podcasting - an automated way of making audio files (such as radio shows) available to download - should be old hat. The latest spin-off from this technology, said Ellen Lee in the Fort Wayne News-Sentinel, is Godcasting. According to Lee, Godcasts - "religious and spiritually themed podcasts" - have become "the most popular use of the new online technology since it debuted less than a year ago". They "range from a daily dose of Scripture to a weekly dose of the Bible translated into Klingon", continued Lee, who explained that "the vast majority are Christian-based, but they also include New Age, Jewish and Buddhist podcasts."
Read the guardian article online.
Experts have discovered that Dundee is the most economical place in Scotland to study.
New research shows that US teenagers prefer instant messaging rather than e-mail to stay in touch with each other. A Pew Internet and American Life Project study found online teens are increasingly tech-savvy. Nearly nine out of 10 teenagers say they use the net, up from 74 percent in 2000. Read fuller details of the survey’s findings.
Every adult in Scotland will soon be offered up to £100 to improve their computer skills. The initiative is part of the Executive's Individual Learning Account (ILA) Scotland scheme which offers low income learners up to £200 a year to pay for courses to help them get back into work. This has now been extended to provide funding of up to £100 a year for basic skills Information and Communications Technology (ICT) training to everyone in Scotland over 18, regardless of income.
Universities in Scotland are getting in ahead of next year’s anti-smoking legislation. Abertay and Napier universities currently have completely smoke-free campuses. Now Glasgow is to follow suit.
As part of the eMerge programme of staff development, the Scottish Further Education Funding Council has agreed to fund a further 8 places on the Image Engine project being run by RSC Scotland North & East. The Image Engine course runs from the beginning of September until the first week in December 2005 and is designed to look at all aspects of using visual images to enhance online learning materials. Participants will be seconded from their home Colleges for one day per week for the duration of the project and will be expected to attend a number of workshops at the RSC training facility in Edinburgh. If you’re interested in taking part, please discuss your application with your line manager and staff development officer, then apply online.
These courses and others are listed on the Scotfeict website which also lists other staff development opportunities for FE staff within Scotland.
Nationwide training opportunities are available on the NLN events database.
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