Martin Hamilton looks at what the classroom of the future might look like, and how the new ETAG (Department for Education’s independent think tank the Education Technology Action Group) report could have an impact. Find out more in his original blog.
via Jisc news
As we mark Safer Internet Day, in this podcast John Hofgartner from Weston College explains about how the college's e-safety campaign is raising awareness of online issues and encouraging students to safeguard themselves.
via Jisc news
Jisc is looking for staff and students who are either planning to, or already undertaking a joint approach for curriculum development, to take part in a free pilot course.
Jisc is providing the free Staff and Educational Development Association (SEDA) accredited course to support staff and students working in partnership on curriculum innovation projects in UK further education, higher education and skills sector. Enabling them to work more effectively together.
The course comprises two modules:
Sarah Knight, senior co-design manager, Jisc says:
“We are delighted to launch the new SEDA accredited Jisc institutional change leader award in recognition of the important role that student-staff partnership working plays in driving forward curriculum innovation and institutional change. The award offers an exciting opportunity for Jisc to work with staff and student change agents across further and higher education and the skills sector who are innovating their practice.”
Dr Mark Kerrigan, from Anglia Ruskin University, who is leading the course on behalf of Jisc says:
“The initial response has been brilliant, we already have people from across the country enrolled. It is going to be rich and vibrant course, which will help inform and support staff and students working in partnership.”
Benefits of the course for participants include:
To register to take part in the course please visit our registration page. Registrations close on the 26 February.
The course will commence on Monday 2 March 2015 with an online induction at 10:00 in Blackboard Collaborate and complete on Friday 5 June 2015. The course will run again from late September 2015.
If you would like more information about the course, please email Dr Mark Kerrigan
This course is part of Jisc’s change agents’ network - a network of staff and students working in partnership to support curriculum enhancement and innovation.
via Jisc news
Today Jisc has announced its full programme for the Jisc Digital Festival 2015 taking place from 9-10 March 2015 at the ICC in Birmingham.
The two-day event will present the best digital talent the UK has to offer under the umbrella theme of ‘connect more’. It will feature a diverse line-up of digital innovators and leading organisations in the learning technology space, appealing to stakeholders across further education (FE), higher education (HE), skills and research.
By bringing together people working across digital technology in UK education, research, skills and enterprise, alongside leading experts and suppliers, the Jisc Digital Festival offers a platform to share best practice and knowledge, in order to help the UK retain its position as the world’s most digitally advanced education and research nation.
Phil Richards, chief innovation officer at Jisc, said:
“With digital technology changing faster than ever, education providers need to be sure they are skilled in the use of digital technology to be able to take full advantage of these opportunities. This type of expertise will not only help improve the student experience, but can provide business intelligence, cost savings through digital resources and administration, and even help attract more students. Our festival will offer support and advice on all these areas, alongside sector experts to ensure the UK really leads the way in digital technology. The real question you need to ask is: are you ready for the future of education?”
Programme sessions will include the latest technologies and how they can support teaching and research practices, such as 3D technologies, augmented reality and geospatial services, to ensure institutions are able to make informed decisions about the tools that are available to them.
One day of the festival will feature a set of sessions with a particular resonance for FE and skills delegates. Topics being discussed will include how IT and digital capabilities can enhance student employability, enabling mobile learning and facing FELTAG together. Representatives from high profile tech firms will also be speaking on an FE theme, including internet search giant Google, talking about how the FE community has used Google tools to transform operations.
Sharing the full programme today adds to the already highly anticipated keynote speakers; Simon Nelson, chief executive of FutureLearn, the social learning platform of The Open University, and Carole Goble CBE, professor in the school of computer science at the University of Manchester.
Tickets and a full programme of the event can be found here.
via Jisc news
Jisc, which provides the Janet network for UK education and research, has contributed to a Cabinet Office report looking at the digital and telecommunications infrastructure owned or leased by the public sector.
This report has been undertaken to ensure that full advantage is taken of existing infrastructure, benefiting the public through better, more pervasive digital services and through savings to the taxpayer.
One key message from the report is that it is necessary for public sector assets to be used collaboratively. Jisc has for many years taken this approach, working with and sharing assets with local government across England, and with the Scottish and Welsh governments.
Jisc has also worked with the NHS for many years to support medical education and research, and has made the power of the Janet network available to the BBC and its partners in supporting trials of very high-definition streaming of the Olympic and the Commonwealth Games.
Dr Bob Day, executive director, Janet, at Jisc comments:
“We are pleased to see this report identifying further opportunities for joint approaches. As the report makes clear through the maps it contains, there is much that could be done in sharing infrastructure. But it can also be about much more than this.
The UK’s education and research community has a long and successful record in collaborative development of technologies and services, for example in mobile working and in safe and secure access to digital content and services. Jisc’s expertise, as well as the infrastructure assets it manages, is of equal value here.
We note also the report’s focus on improving broadband availability in areas that are difficult to reach, particularly with next-generation broadband products. Students in today’s learning environment are not all in city centre schools, colleges and universities, so high-quality broadband now needs to be available for education and research outside the classroom; at home, in the workplace and in public locations.
Equally, many of today’s big research challenges will require high-bandwidth, ubiquitous networks to collect and process the vast amounts of data involved.
Jisc is glad to see this initiative and believe it will help to support UK research and education. Through the Janet network and otherwise we will continue what has been a very productive engagement with our colleagues in the telecommunications and digital infrastructure portfolio activity.”
via Jisc news
Last week we held our annual stakeholder forum at London's Royal Society. The event was to update our customers on what we've been up to, find out what is high on your list of priorities and where we can work with you to develop solutions that meet your needs. Hear a summary of the outcomes of the day in this podcast. There are also interviews with Mike Cope (UCL), Peter Kilcoyne (Heart of Worcestershire College) and John Tuck (Royal Holloway). Find out more in Ken Thomson's original blog post.
via Jisc news
In this podcast executive director, Jisc technologies Tim Kidd introduces Networkshop43: Jisc's annual technical event, which takes place between 31 March and 2 April 2015. Register for your chance to win one of three iPad Airs kindly donated by Infinity. Competition terms and conditions can be found on the Networkshop43 website.
via Jisc news
In this podcast, Jisc's Allen Crawford-Thomas shares his five tips for getting technology use embedded in colleges, looking at good practice in Henley College, South Worcestershire College, Hereford Sixth Form College and South Staffordshire College. Links mentioned in the podcast can be found in Allen's original blog.
via Jisc news
Jisc is searching for a leading figure from the UK higher or further education arena to take on the role of Jisc chair.
As the education and research sectors own body for digital technology, Jisc is one of the most important components in the sector's success. The role and leadership contribution of the chair is crucial in enabling the charity to continue to deliver in this respect.
Jisc is looking for someone with:
Martyn Harrow, chief executive of Jisc, says:
“We are looking for a new chair to follow in the immensely successful footsteps of Professor Sir Tim O’Shea and more recently Professor Martin Hall. There is now the opportunity to contribute directly to the future success of Jisc.
This position will play a key part in the next steps for the organisation and we are excited to have the opportunity to welcome a new enthusiastic individual to our board.”
Special thanks is due to Martin Hall, who will be retiring shortly from the position of chair. During his tenure he contributed considerable time, passion and vision to Jisc and the delivery of our mission: to enable people in education and research to perform at the forefront of international practice by exploiting fully the possibilities of modern digital technology.
If you are interested in applying for the post to lead the board of Jisc, to help universities and colleges harness the potential of digital approaches for their individual and collective advantage, please contact Susan Ehmann for an information pack.
Closing date for receipt of applications: 18 February 2015.
via Jisc news
Last week we had a great few days at Bett 2015, chairing the Technology in Higher Education Summit. We also joined Heppell and the Education and Training Foundation on the Answers, Answers, Answers stand, and here, Jisc's Nigel Ecclesfield reflects on the show as a whole.
via Jisc news
We're at BETT 2015 this week chairing the Technology in Higher Education Summit - a space for higher education professionals to share ideas, future-gaze and streamline technology decision-making. In this podcast, Jisc's Tim Marshall discusses the findings from a day of sessions on the topic of 'maintaining your institution's competitiveness'.
via Jisc news
We're at BETT 2015 this week chairing the Technology in Higher Education Summit - a space for higher education professionals to share ideas, future-gaze and streamline technology decision-making. In this podcast, Jisc's Sarah Davies discusses the findings from a day of sessions on the topic of 'Developing pedagogy', and Esther Barrett tells us what caught her eye around the exhibition.
via Jisc news
We're at BETT 2015 this week chairing the Technology in Higher Education Summit - a space for higher education professionals to share ideas, future-gaze and streamline technology decision-making. In this podcast, Jisc's Lawrie Phipps discusses the findings from a day of sessions on the topic of 'Enhancing the learning of students'.
via Jisc news
Almost half of IT staff in higher education (HE) are not involved in the delivery of transnational education (TNE) by their own institution overseas, according to a joint report by Jisc and the Observatory of Borderless Higher Education (OBHE).
The research – which was designed to uncover the current state of TNE in UK HE institutions – found that 45% of IT staff were in the dark regarding TNE activities. This finding is despite technology being integral to universities delivering teaching and qualifications to students in other countries.
The finding is reiterated by IT departments’ exclusion from TNE decision making, with only 27% claiming they were involved in institutions’ development plans. When it comes to deciding on future TNE activities, this number falls to a worryingly low 1%, which suggests that where IT infrastructure is being considered at all, it is only as an after-thought.
There is also a lack of awareness regarding system risks and threats. When asked if data-related problems had previously been encountered abroad through their university’s TNE activities, just over half (52%) answered ‘don’t know’, while 57% were unaware if their institutional risk assessments included IT infrastructure.
Esther Wilkinson, business development lead for transnational education, Jisc, said:
“The successful delivery of transnational education is underpinned by efficient, reliable and quality IT infrastructure, so it’s a concern that IT departments are disconnected from this process. For many universities, the boom has meant that they have not always had the time to consider fully their methods of delivery, and as a consequence IT staff have not always been included. This issue will only increase as popularity does, and is almost certain to become a problem unless appropriate steps are taken to bolster connectivity.
"It’s clear that more communication is needed amongst UK higher education IT staff about the important role they can play in supporting TNE online and distance learning, as well as encouragement and involvement in international staff planning activities. One of the key actions that we at Jisc are taking from the report is an engagement campaign which will aim to fill this knowledge gap, increase IT staff involvement in TNE development and delivery, and share best practice.”
TNE is increasingly being recognised for the important role it plays in the UK economy and has been named by the government as one of the key policy strands in the education component of the industrial strategy. A report by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills in late 2014 on the value of TNE to the UK estimated that £496m was generated in 2012/13 alone from this activity stream.
In order to better understand the market, Jisc commissioned OBHE to undertake research on current trends in UK institutions’ delivery of TNE, future direction of travel, challenges and opportunities for the HE sector.
Wilkinson continued:
“TNE represents a major growth market for the UK, and there are significant opportunities as it becomes more widely accepted as an effective delivery method for international education, for all learning levels. It’s hugely important, then, that institutions are given the support they need to deliver as demand increases. We at Jisc are committed to taking these findings forward and helping institutions make the most of TNE in the coming years.”
Richard Garrett, director of the Observatory, added:
“TNE is often entrepreneurial in character, and can seem far removed from the parent institution, both geographically and in terms of visibility. As TNE grows in significance, arrangements mature and IT infrastructure defines all aspects of institutional activity, more joined up thinking is required. Service consistency, efficiency and risk management demand that the CIO and other senior IT staff have a seat at the table when decisions are made about current and future TNE. This is critical to student and institutional success. As such, the Observatory was pleased to work with Jisc on this project.”
The research involved two distinct groups: international offices, and IT departments. A total of 84 institutions responded, all of which were either members of Universities UK or GuildHE.
Other findings to emerge include ‘online provision, blended or distance learning’ being the preferred method of delivery, chosen by 54%. Establishing a branch campus abroad was the least popular, named by just 10% of respondents.
For more information on the report or Jisc’s future TNE plans visit the TNE project page or contact Esther Wilkinson. You can also find out more during a plenary session at the Jisc Digital Festival on 10 March.
via Jisc news
Our new book, 'E-books in education: realising the vision', describes how managers, teachers and librarians encourage the use of e-books and why they can be an important asset for institutions, academics and students. Find out more in our latest podcast, and download the book for free.
via Jisc news
Publishers John Wiley and Sons, Inc. and Jisc today announce a pilot agreement for articles published on an open access basis.
The agreement follows discussions between Jisc, Wiley and the UK library community, and will enable greater support for universities during the transition to open access.
Running from January 2015 to December 2017, the agreement provides credits for article processing charges (APCs) to universities that license Wiley journal content under the terms of the Jisc journal agreement. This means that universities that pay both subscription charges for publications and fees to make articles open access will receive APC credits based on the total prior year spend.
The APC credits will be available when publishing in Wiley’s Open Access journal publishing program.
Customers need to have a Wiley Open Access Account set up to be eligible to receive their APC credits. Wiley Open Access Accounts provide discounts on APCs and the account dashboard reduces the administrative burden on both authors and institutions.
Lorraine Estelle, executive director digital resources at Jisc and divisional CEO Jisc Collections says:
“Jisc Collections is working with all journal publishers of hybrid journals on the total cost of ownership of scholarly communications. We are delighted to have agreed this ground breaking pilot offset scheme. We expect this to moderate costs for UK universities and to help reduce some of the barriers to open access implementation.”
The agreement re-affirms Jisc and Wiley’s commitment to exploring new models of open access alongside our library and research partners.
via Jisc news
Jisc is pleased to announce two new representatives on our board of trustees, who will help determine our strategic direction and priorities to reflect the present and future needs of UK education and research.
Vice-chancellor of Lancaster University, Professor Mark E. Smith, and Dr Ken Thomson, the principal of Forth Valley College in Scotland, are to join our board of senior leaders and managers from across UK further and higher education.
Professor Martin Hall, chair of Jisc’s board of trustees, says,
“I am delighted to welcome Mark and Ken to the board as both of them have an enormous amount of experience in education and their expertise will be very welcome. New perspectives like theirs help us to ensure that Jisc is guided by the communities we serve and that we consistently deliver against their priorities.”
Creative Commons attribution information
Mark SmithAll rights reserved
Professor Mark Smith studied natural sciences at the University of Cambridge, before completing a PhD in physics at the University of Warwick. After time developing his research in Germany and Australia, he returned to the UK first at the University of Kent and then re-joined Warwick as reader in 1998.
He held roles within the physics department before being appointed chair of the faculty of science in 2005, pro-vice chancellor for research in 2007, and subsequently deputy vice-chancellor.
In his current role as vice-chancellor of Lancaster University, his responsibilities include chairing the main resourcing committee of the university.
He says,
“Jisc plays a very important role in its support of higher and further education providing world class infrastructure and other services. It is also one of the real success stories of a shared service. As Jisc in its new form continues to develop there are many interesting challenges which I hope to contribute to as a board member.”
Creative Commons attribution information
Ken ThomsonAll rights reserved
With 21 years’ experience in the further education sector Dr Ken Thomson took up his role as principal of Forth Valley College in August 2013. He has a degree in zoology from Nottingham University and a PhD in veterinary entomology from Edinburgh University.
As a senior lecturer in life sciences he led a four college consortium in developing a £1.5m technical training project for biotechnology.
He became head of science (2001), then director of learning services (2003) before becoming associate principal (2005) at Forth Valley College and deputy principal from 2007 with strategic responsibility for the college’s future curriculum, school/college partnership, quality assurance and learning innovation.
Ken is a member of the Colleges Scotland Principals Group, a member of the Colleges Scotland Learning, Skills and Quality Committee and is a former board member of Learning & Teaching Scotland. Ken is a fellow of the Institute of Directors.
In November 2014, Forth Valley College were awarded the prestigious Association of Colleges Beacon Award for Innovation in FE as a result of their whole college approach to an exciting vision to ‘Making Learning Work’.
He says,
“I am really looking forward to working with the board of Jisc. Jisc has a reputation for innovation, for being at the forefront of learning technologies and I am particularly keen to promote the obvious opportunities and added value for the end users, our teaching staff, students and customers”.
The new trustees take up their roles in December 2014.Read more about the role of the Jisc board.
via Jisc news
The UK’s national research and education network Janet, provided by Jisc, and Infinity SDC have walked away with two prestigious awards from this year’s Datacentre Dynamics EMEA Awards 2014.
Tim Kidd, executive director Jisc technologies, said:
“Jisc is very pleased to have worked with Infinity to create the Jisc data centre – the first shared data centre for medical and academic research in the UK. With its very high capacity connectivity to the core of Janet, this datacentre will support academic research and enterprise requirements through a world-class facility.”
The first award, data centre blueprints, celebrates the innovative thinking behind the datacentre: the design, project management and construction. The innovation award rewards the Jisc data centre for showcasing best practice and leadership in the data centre sector.
The judges were highly impressed with the design of the Jisc data centre which incorporates multiple resilience levels and power densities and supports a diversity of applications from enterprise to high performance computing.
Stuart Sutton, CEO at Infinity SDC, said:
“This is an incredibly important achievement for us. The technology used will further the UK’s position as a global leader in academic and medical research and the work we carry out in these sectors can be life changing, and we are proud to be a part of that.”
The Datacentre Dynamics Awards are the leading awards for the data centre industry recognising innovation, leadership and ‘out of the box’ thinking. With 15 established award categories, the awards celebrate data centre projects of all sizes, across all sectors.
Paul Mangles, global awards manager for the Datacentre Dynamics Awards, said:
“Succeeding in this industry is no mean feat and it’s important to recognise the businesses that are tackling the issues brought on by technology’s rapid evolution. These awards are designed to do just that."
via Jisc news
Journal publishing models are changing rapidly, especially here in the UK. In this podcast we look at the pressing need for institutions to track the true cost of article processing charges (APCs) so they can manage their transition to open access from a position of authority and monitor their costs effectively. Read the accompanying blog post by Lorraine Estelle.
via Jisc news
Last week, we released a report on the ethical and legal challenges of learning analytics. Find out more in this podcast from report author Niall Sclater. Read Niall's blog post about the report.
via Jisc news
Today sees us launch registration for Networkshop43.
Networkshop43 is an annual technical event for those working in UK education and research, which will this year be hosted at the University of Exeter from 31 March – 2 April, 2015.
Chris Lintott, professor of astrophysics and citizen science lead, at the University of Oxford is confirmed to speak on technology-enabled citizen science: scientific research that is conducted, in whole or in part, by amateur or non-professional scientists.
Lintott is involved in a number of popular science projects aimed at bringing astronomy to a wider audience. He is the primary presenter of the BBC series The Sky at Night. Lintott is also a co-author of the book Bang! – The Complete History of the Universe with Patrick Moore and Queen guitarist and astrophysicist Brian May. He is also the principal investigator for citizen science web portal Zooniverse.org which will form the basis for his presentation.
He comments:
“I’m looking forward to talking to all sorts of people at Networkshop about how we can really open up science so that it becomes something everyone does, not just a privileged few.”
Aimed at network managers and technical staff in UK higher and further education, Networkshop43 has become an established and unrivalled event on the academic conference calendar. It showcases developments in UK education IT services and provides an opportunity for IT professionals from across the sectors to share best practice.
Tim Kidd, executive director Jisc technologies, says:
“I see Networkshop43 as a great place to showcase how far along the road we are with our vision to make the UK the most digitally advanced education and research nation in the world. The conference provides a forum for discussion on the latest technologies that will help keep the UK at the forefront of international practice.
This is your opportunity to meet and talk face-to-face with other experts, and to increase your awareness and knowledge of new technologies and innovations. Alongside this, the programme has something to offer both the further and higher education sectors, and will also address key challenges around security, telephony, network technology, trust and indemnity, and wireless technology.”
Networkshop43 also provides attendees with the opportunity to engage with suppliers and commercial companies who will be exhibiting throughout the duration of the event. A number of leading organisations in the learning technologies space have already confirmed as exhibiting, including Dell, Hewlett-Packard, Cisco, BT, Infinity and The Cloud.
Networkshop43 is open for registrations on Thursday 4 December. Early bird tickets are available until 31 January 2015.
via Jisc news
Last week we were in London for the 2014 Times Higher Education Awards, which recognise and celebrate exceptional talent, dedication and innovation across the sector. We sponsored the award for Outstanding ICT Initiative of the Year, won by the Open University's OpenScience Laboratory. We were hugely impressed by all of the shortlisted institutions though, and in this podcast Jisc futurist Martin Hamilton talks us through the projects and initiatives.
via Jisc news
This podcast features interviews with teams from the recent Summer of Student Innovation showcase event as they discuss their projects. It also includes comment from Jisc's chief innovation officer Phil Richards and deputy chief innovation officer Andy McGregor who oversees the competition.
via Jisc news
This podcast features interviews with teams from the recent Summer of Student Innovation showcase event as they discuss their projects. It also includes comment from Jisc's chief innovation officer Phil Richards and deputy chief innovation officer Andy McGregor who oversees the competition.
via Jisc news
Yesterday, we announced we would be offering further development support to two student digital projects.
Students from the University of Southampton and Sussex Downs College who took part in our Summer of Student Innovation will each receive additional expert support and funding to continue developing their concepts over the next 12 months. Both of the projects are designed to improve the experiences of learners, colleges and universities through digital technologies.
The decision was announced during the Summer of Student Innovation showcase at the University of Reading, which featured the 20 winning teams from the 2014 cohort.
Paul Bailey, senior co-design manager at Jisc said:
“We are committed to supporting ideas that have the potential to make a tangible difference to learners and teachers by enhancing their experiences of academic life, such as these do. The two projects we are taking forward demonstrate some of the fresh and innovative thinking coming from students in the UK.
We have been hugely impressed, not only by the initial ideas that were first brought to us, but also as they have evolved to become fully-fledged, workable solutions.”
In the first project the focus is on enhancing qualitative experiences between staff and students. Called Unitu, it is led by Ignacio Willats, who graduated from the University of Southampton this year, and aims to provide a system that can be integrated with any university structure to help them manage the feedback process and close the feedback loop. Staff, course representatives and students can all access a central issues board, where issues can be raised and resolved in a transparent and streamlined way.
Lingoflow, the second project, is designed by brothers Lukas and Kamil Ondrej from Sussex Downs College. Their app is intended to help learners master foreign languages by letting them create collections of vocabulary. It will send the user reminders to review certain items, score their recollection, and encourage repetition of the less well-known ones.
Projects of this nature really do make a difference, as seen with Call For Participants. It was one of the ideas to be put forward through the first run of Summer of Student Innovation in 2013, and has become the world’s largest open platform where researchers can promote their studies and connect with participants for free.
Matt Terrell, chief communications officer and one of the co-founders of Call For Participants, commented:
“Through the backing we’ve received from Jisc we have been able to develop our offer at a much quicker rate, and with the input of mentors with proven expertise in the sector, than would otherwise have been possible. The support has meant we were able to launch an improved website at the end of the summer, and are now free to concentrate on growing uptake of the service among colleges and universities.”
2014 was the second year of the Summer of Student Innovation competition. It is managed by Jisc in conjunction with Research Libraries UK (RLUK), Russell Universities’ Group of IT Directors (RUGIT), the Society of College, National and University Libraries (SCONUL), Universities and Colleges Information Systems Association (UCISA) and the Association for Learning Technology (ALT).
Paul Bailey continued:
“Summer of Student Innovation is a unique opportunity for learners to see a major project through from the ground up. Colleges and universities can also benefit, by getting an internal, needs-led perspective of what students want, and the option to trial new technological developments coming from within their own institution.”
Contact Paul Bailey for more information.
via Jisc news