Look on the News page for teaching and learning news from the UK art, design and media higher education sector, including events, calls for papers, funding opportunities and more. See the About us page for information on how to share your news on this blog.

Friday 2 March 2012

Write a review - Research in the Arts

We have Michael Biggs' and Henrik Karlsson's Research in the Arts, published by Routledge, available for review.  If you work in UK-based art, design or media higher education and are interested in reviewing it, please get in touch: d.flint@brighton.ac.uk.  Selected reviews are published in Networks.  Reviewers can claim £50 worth of book tokens and can keep the review copy. See http://arts.brighton.ac.uk/projects/networks/submissions/resource-review-guidance for submission details.

FROM THE ARCHIVE - The Best Use of Infinity: Open Educational Resources and the Politics of Knowledge

The Best Use of Infinity: Open Educational Resources and the Politics of Knowledge
Alan Clarke, York St John University

This article addresses the issue of what have generally become known as ‘Open Educational Resources’ (OER), essentially, the practice of putting educational resources online for free. Alan Clarke examines the idea of the ‘fair use’ of intellectual materials and the concept of educational and creative matter being in the ‘commons’ and commonly available to all.

Published in Autumn 2009: Networks, Issue 8, pp. 20-23. 
To access the article


Next week is Open Education Week (5 - 10 March 2012) which is taking place online and in locally hosted events around the world. The purpose of Open Education Week is to raise awareness of the open education movement and its impact on teaching and learning worldwide. Participation in all events and use of all resources is free an open to anyone. We feel that Alan Clarke's article will be of interest.

Drawing on All Resources - updated information about the event

Drawing on All Resources: developing open educational practice in art, design and media
University of Brighton
16 May 2012

This one-day event, aimed at tutors and managers in creative practice higher education, will showcase the work of individuals, departments and institutions working towards more open educational practices in art, design and media disciplines. 



Aims of the event:
  • To capture, recognise and share the work of individuals, departments and institutions in developing open educational practices in creative practice higher education.
  • To allow specialists in the OER field, to present examples and discuss current developments in the creation and use of licensed educational materials.
  • To enable those attending the event to engage in open dialogue about themes and issues that are emerging around the creation and use of online teaching and learning resources.
We are very pleased to announce that the Keynote speaker is Paul Gerhardt, who runs the UK based media consultancy, Archives for Creativity.

Presentations will be made by experienced and inspirational colleagues from various institutions and organisations including; University of the Arts London, University of Bedfordshire, University of Brighton, CHEAD, University for the Creative Arts, De Montfort University, University of Falmouth, Herriot Watt University, Kingston University, Northbrook College, SCORE at The Open University, Wimbledon College of Art and Winchester School of Art.

More information, including registration, will be available online next week. 

GENERAL NEWS - from HE

EVENT - Change Symposium
Lakeside Centre, Aston University
8 March 2012

The Symposium, organised by the Higher Education Academy is an opportunity for those with an interest in institutional change to share knowledge and experiences. Discussions will focus on the following issues: 
  • The HE ‘market’ – competition, brand, reputation and distinctiveness;
  • Refocusing on the student experience – aligning institutional processes with student priorities;
  • Spend or save? – Resources, efficiencies, investment and risk;
  • Culture and capability – leadership, attitudes, motivation and incentives.
There are a few places remaining at the Symposium which will be filled on a first come, first served basis. The event is free to attend and will run from 10.30 to 3.30. To book a place, please use the link below (bookings will close at midnight on Monday 5 March).


 
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EVENT - Supporting disabled students in HE

Sheffield Hallam University 
14 March 2012

RAISE (Researching, Advancing & Inspiring Student Engagement)  are hosting this workshop, which aims to cover both on- and off-campus situations for students. They hope it will be a valuable opportunity for them to share good practice on this important issue - whether one personally researches in this area or simply recognises its significance in day-to-day practice.
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EVENTS - UK Quality Code for Higher Education, Chapter B5: Student engagement - Consultation events
Glasgow Caledonian University
15 March 2012
&
Woburn House, London
16 March 2012

QAA is currently consulting on the content of Chapter B5: Student engagement of the UK Quality Code for Higher Education. This new Chapter is intended to recognise the value of student engagement in quality assurance, and the important role that students can play in enhancing their learning experience. (Also see CALL below)
  
As part of the consultation process for this revision, QAA will be holding two consultation events. They will bring together representatives from across the UK to share their thoughts on the content of the Chapter, and provide comments on the draft text. Participants will also have the opportunity to hear about innovations, and share practice, in student engagement. These events will be of interest to higher education staff working in quality assurance and/or student engagement; students and student reps; representative bodies; and policy makers.
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EVENT - Supporting Professional Practice and Recognition within HE in FE
Wakefield College, West Yorkshire
19 March 2012
                       
A half day workshop for FE Colleges delivering Higher Education: Engaging with the UKPSF and the HEA’s Professional Recognition opportunities. The workshop is suitable for Deans, Managers and Directors of Higher Education and other staff with responsibility for developing staff and the quality of higher education provision in FECs.
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EVENT - Introduction to Open Educational Resources
The Open University, Edinburgh
27 March 2012



This one-day workshop is aimed at those in Higher Education who are new to Open Educational Resources (OER) and Open Education Practice (OEP).  Delegates will be offered an introduction to the key issues, motivating factors, tools for creating and finding OER, and repositories hosting OER, as well as an overview of licensing and rights. 
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EVENT - Improving Graduate Employability: Responding to the Needs of Students and Employers
The Commonwealth Club, London
27 March 2012

This Policy & Practice Briefing will address key issues in regard to the issue. In the face of rising tuition fees and competition for student numbers, universities are striving to improve and demonstrate their employability track records. These efforts are set to be helped by the publication of The Wilson Review, which will recommend ways in which HEIs can establish industry links and prepare students for work. Capitalising on the proposals and effectively implementing reforms to information on HE will be crucial in meeting the demands of students and employers. 
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EVENT - 5th Annual University of Glasgow Learning and Teaching Conference
Empowering Student Learners in Higher Education
University of Glasgow
17 April 2012

The Conference will be of interest to all members of the Higher Education community with an interest in teaching, learning and assessment, and in a change to previous Learning and Teaching conferences, will be open to a limited number of external delegates.

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EVENT - SEDA Workshop - UK Professional Standards Framework for Teaching and Supporting Learning: from PG certs to provision at all levels
Birkbeck University of London
24 April 2012

Most universities and HE colleges provide Post Graduate Certificates or equivalent courses for staff new to HE teaching. This event will share expertise and explore models of provision and HR processes for developing and rewarding across the whole range.
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CALL – for comments on UK Quality Code for Higher Education, Chapter B5: Student engagement - Draft for consultation

Deadline for responses: 18 April 2012

In recent years, student involvement in quality assurance and enhancement processes has become a higher priority for institutions, to the extent that it is now well established. Across the sector, students’ voices are heard and their views are being taken seriously. This new Chapter is intended to recognise the value of student engagement in quality assurance, and the important role that students can play in enhancing their learning experience.

The QAA hope that this consultation process will be provocative, generating widespread dialogue and discussions about what it is possible to say, at a sector-wide level, about student engagement in the UK. They welcome contributions to this consultation from anyone with an interest in student engagement in the UK - including representatives from all four countries; prospective, current and past students; and staff from the full range of higher education providers.
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CALL – for contributions to Sharing Practice Conference 2012
Exploring How Practitioners Enhance Practice – A Research-informed Approach
The University of Central Lancashire
4 July 2012

Deadline for Abstracts: 20 April 2012

Contributions, in the form of posters with short accompanying presentations, are invited which address a broad range of themes including, but not limited to: Learner experience and engagement; Professional Identities; Collaborative and practice-based learning; Effective learning environments.

Submit 300 word abstract describing the research, link to themes and impact of 
outcomes. E-mail abstracts to YAppleby@uclan.ac.uk or RMHPilkington@uclan.ac.uk
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NEWS & CALL – for submissions to the Journal of Pedagogic Development

JPD is developed in the Centre for Learning Excellence at the University of Bedfordshire. Volume 1 Issue 2 is now available online.

The editors also hope that you will consider submitting a paper or an article to the journal for Volume 2 Issue 2. Deadline for submissions: 30 May 2012 
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NEWS - Journal of Curatorial Studies published

Intellect has announced the publication of a new journal and, they are offering issue 1.1 for FREE online.

The Journal of Curatorial Studies is an international, peer-reviewed publication that explores the cultural functioning of curating and its relation to exhibitions, institutions, audiences, aesthetics and display culture.

Thursday 1 March 2012

EVENT - Community-powered digital transformations

Production and Creativity workshop
University of Westminster, London
29 March 2012

Digital transformations mean that cultural and media organisations now find themselves in a new environment in which communities of participants interact to create, curate, organise and support cultural experiences.

This is the first in a series of AHRC-funded events where practitioners and researchers will come together to consider innovative practices, and develop new ideas together.

This workshop will consider:
  • How can the creativity of interested communities be unlocked for maximum benefit?
  • To what extent can the creativity of enthusiasts be channelled and organised to achieve specific goals?
  • What is the role of the professional producer as they find themselves in a community of enthusiast producers, fans, and other practitioners?
The day will involve presentations, discussions, and smaller-group conversations.

Speakers confirmed so far:
  • John Naughton, technology writer for The Observer, author of From Gutenberg to Zuckerberg: What You Really Need to Know About the Internet, former Professor of the Public Understanding of Technology at the Open University
  • Frances Taylor, British Library, responsible for connecting the British Library with the creative industries
  • David Gauntlett, author of Making is Connecting, Professor of Media and Communications at University of Westminster

CALL – for papers for Documentary and the Environment Symposium

University of Surrey
14 September  2012

Deadline for proposals: 29 June 2012

The third in the series ‘Documentary and …’ hosted by the Film Studies programme at the University of Surrey. The ‘Documentary and …’ series seeks to explore the conjunction of the documentary project with the worlds it encounters and the practical and conceptual modifications these combinations bring.

The first decades of the twenty-first century have seen a consistent flow of environmental documentary films, which have managed to gain attention beyond special interest groups.  This one-day event aims to explore the emergence or perhaps resurgence of this documentary subgenre. How have documentary filmmakers worked with the concepts of the environment and environmental awareness?  What are the ethics and aesthetics of environmental documentary filmmaking?  How do theories of documentary, ecology, and the theorisation of environmental politics interact?  How do audiences respond to environmental documentaries?

The organisers invite speakers and contributors working on documentary film and non-fiction media as well as on the intersection of documentary with environmental education, environmental communication, and environmental psychology to respond to these questions.

http://www2.surrey.ac.uk/dft/research/currentprojects/surrey/

CALL – for papers and panel proposals for Screen | Memory | History

Film & History Association of Australia & New Zealand Conference 2012
Victoria University, Melbourne, Australia
2 - 5 December 2012
  
Deadline for abstracts and bios: 30 March 2012

This is the 16th Biennial Film and History Conference and is an opportunity for international scholars, archivists, and filmmakers to present their thoughts on recent debates and events in the fields of: film and television history, history and film and television, national and transnational cinemas, screen theory and practice, and the social and cultural significance of cinema.

Tuesday 28 February 2012

CALL – for submissions to VaroomLab Conference 2012

Boundaries: making and breaking illustration’s frontiers
Plymouth University
14 – 15 September 2012

Deadline for submissions: 19 March 2012

Academic and professional submissions are invited for consideration for a VaroomLab* conference.

http://www.varoom-mag.com/?page_id=311

*VaroomLab was established to provide a platform for exchange and discussion of ideas around the broad subject of illustration. VaroomLab on line provides a wide forum to challenge and potentially expand research and hence provide maximum possible impact.

CALL – for papers for Cinema in the Interstices

Alphaville: Journal of Film and Screen Media, Inaugural Conference 2012
University College Cork, Ireland
7 - 8 September 2012

Deadline for abstracts: 6 April 2012

Rather than forming a continuum, film and film history are composed of a series of transitions, gaps and junctures: points where a ceding or progression to a different way of thinking or being occurs. This holds true from the era of early cinema up to the advent of digital technologies. Whether extratextualor, increasingly, intertextual and intermedial, these interstices represent areas of exchange where ideas and expression can be freed from formal concerns to yield exciting and unexpected outcomes.

The conference organisers/journal editors are interested in exploring these interstitial spaces to provoke dialogues on transition and difference. As an online journal, dedicated to innovative thinking in the area of film and screen media, they feel that this topic will provide an excellent forum for exploring fertile areas of research. They welcome proposals for papers that consider the idea of the interstice as a means of addressing junctures in a broad range of film-related areas.

A selection of the conference papers will be included in a peer-reviewed Alphaville issue on the same topic to be published in 2013.

EVENT – open 'Talking about art/collaborative crit development' meeting

University of the Arts London, 272 High Holborn, London, WC1V 7EY
21 March 2012

This is the second open meeting for the project; you are welcome to participate even if you were not able to attend the first meeting held on 6 February at Chelsea.

The aim of having these meetings is to pool expertise and good practice when it comes to facilitating the process of talking about, reading and describing art – in the crit, gallery or studio context – especially in order to help each person to participate fully and confidently in a crit. The project team aim to pull in expertise from university and gallery educators around the UK and the end goal is to produce a set of dynamic and accessible learning resources that can communicate such techniques and be shared, accredited, distributed, hosted and used by all (students, graduates, staff, those without an art background or looking for a ‘way in’).

Please see more information on the project:
http://networksadm.blogspot.com/2012/02/call-open-invitation-to-join-open.html

The last meeting identified 3 broad areas that are route causes of difficulty in such situations:

  • Lack of confidence with speaking in public/ negotiating group dynamic,
  • Lack of confidence, experience and received teaching in the techniques of ‘reading art’,
  • Language barriers (subject vocabulary, international students second language).
For this meeting the team would like people to bring along/ think about:
  • Successful strategies you or others have used for facilitating a crit /the process of talking about art,
  • Any research, leads, contacts, examples of good practice,
  • An idea of students you think might be interested in participating in the study,
  • Ideas about what would make for an engaging and dynamic resource to be used by: students, those without an art background as well as staff e.g. video (how), publication, online tools, workshop etc.
If you would like to attend the meeting or for more information, please contact Sarah Rowles director@q-artlondon.com or Siobhan Clay s.clay@arts.ac.uk

CALL - for papers for Varoom issue 18

Academic and professional submissions are invited for consideration for Varoom 18 and VaroomLab on the theme of Entertainment. The editors are interested in considering the range of research questions currently being addressed by academics internationally, relevant to the theme. 

Dates for submission of abstracts/papers: 14 March 2012

However ‘Entertainment’ is defined, a significant portion of that will have involved illustrators, from Hollywood Blockbuster animations, to games and apps, to book covers, music promos, children’s books, graphic novels and title sequences.

Entertainment is all-pervasive, from the cartoons and characters we read on the back of our cereal boxes in the morning to new hybrid forms of edutainment in children’s games and play apps. The Varoom Entertainment Issue will explore the unique creativity illustrators bring to this huge industry in a variety of different forms.


Background
VaroomLab was established to provide a platform for exchange and discussion of ideas around the broad subject of illustration. VaroomLab on line provides a wide forum to challenge and potentially expand research and hence provide maximum possible impact.

Varoom is a unique publication in the UK existing as a vehicle for dissemination of some of this research. Varoom – the illustration report, is a unique large format publication commenting and discussing the contemporary illustrated image in depth, and features interviews with illustrators, image-makers and designers as well as featuring critical articles on different aspects of contemporary illustration by leading commentators.

Monday 27 February 2012

EVENT and CALL – 5th annual Media Education Summit

Bournemouth University
11 - 12 September 2012

This national summit will provide valuable insights into the opportunities and challenges facing media education both now and in the future. The summit builds on four previous successful meetings, each of which attracted over 150 delegates from 65 Higher Education Institutions.

Confirmed keynote speakers for 2012 include Caroline Norbury (Creative England) and Paul Lewis (The Guardian). The Summit also features 'MERJ Conversations' pre-conference session, hosted by the Media Education Research Journal, convened by John Potter (The Institute of Education) and chaired by Julian McDougall (University of Wolverhampton and editor of MERJ).

The themes for this year’s summit:
  • The role and purpose of media education
  • Developing higher level skills
  • Innovative pedagogy related to specific learning contexts
  • Media learning practices in 'Media 2.0'
  • 14-19 educational reform
  • The relationship between theory and practice
  • Assessing media learning
  • Students reflecting on their creative practice
  • How media literacy and media education relate
This year, delegates at the Summit have the opportunity to participate in a follow-on event at the same venue, 'Bridging the Gap' hosted by Skillset and Teesside University.

For more information about the Summit: http://www.cemp.ac.uk/summit/2012/

Call for abstracts for Summit papers and proposals for 'MERJ Conversations'

Deadline for both calls is: 1 June 2012

The organisers are inviting proposals for papers and panel discussions relating to the conference themes.

At this year's Media Education Summit, the Media Education Research Journal (MERJ) will again convene a series of seminars exploring key pertinent themes to media educators in 2012.

For more information about the calls: http://www.cemp.ac.uk/summit/2012/call-for-papers.php

CALL - for articles and visual essays on theme of 'Creative Industries and Education'

The International Journal of Education special issue on the theme of  'Creative Industries and Education'

Deadline for submissions: 30 November 2012

Articles and Visual Essays are sought for a special issue focused on the relationship between Creative Industries and art education. Since the concept of creative industries was first promoted by the UK government 10 years ago the concept has grown globally, developing differently in Europe, Asia, Australia, New Zealand, and North America, and also in international bodies like UNCTAD and UNESCO. Although questions and issues remain around definition, there is some degree of universal consensus about the economic and cultural import of the sectors that make up the Creative Industries. This development has not been without controversy but much of that debate appears to have passed the art education sector by. Some of the concerns that might be addressed by this issue are:
  • Is there any evidence of national or regional Creative Industries policies affecting art education at a strategic level?
  • Are there any examples where Creative Industries has impacted upon the art curriculum and where are they?
  • What does or would a Creative Industries informed approach to art education look like?
  • What implications does the concept of Creative Industries have for teacher education or continuous professional development (CPD)?
  • What advantages or disadvantages might greater dialogue between Creative Industries and art education create?

Guest Editor: Professor Stuart MacDonald


NEWS - DRS Student Research Bursary Scheme

The Design Research Society offers grants of up to £500 to student members of the society. The purpose of the scheme is to help research students’ progress towards a publication in the design research field. £1500 is available for the scheme in each calendar year.

There are two application dates each calendar year: 31 March and 30 September.

To be eligible for a DRS Student Research Bursary, you should:

  • Be a current student member of the Design Research Society;

  • Have a sponsor who is a member of the Design Research Society.
The scheme is intended to cover a wide range of research activities that require funding.  These activities might include (but are not limited to) payments for: research materials, experimental participants, specialist equipment, expertise (for example: translation, statistics, design) and funding for travel.  

http://www.designresearchsociety.org/joomla/component/content/article/934-drs-grants/154-drs-stud-burs.html

Final reminder - contribute to Networks 17 by Friday, 2 March



Deadline for contributions is this Friday, 2 March 2012

Networks 17, to be published in April 2012, will focus on teaching and learning practices in which students take centre stage.  We invite feature articles exploring student involvement in art, design and media curriculum design, ‘delivery’ and assessment, as well as engagement with departmental and institutional structures and processes. We welcome content written by both students and staff or collaboratively.