JISC

In an exclusive interview with JISC Inform, Baroness Warwick of Undercliffe, chief executive of Universities UK, says that Information and Communications Technology (ICT) can bring benefits to everyone in higher education.

“The benefits of e-learning ought to be available to all students,” she says. “Where it is integrated with learning and teaching strategies … and where it links with estates so that technology and our buildings match each other’s needs,” she continues, “there is huge scope. I think it’s endless really.”

Formerly the Committee of Vice-Chancellors and Principals (CVCP), Universities UK represents the interests of universities and some higher education colleges, seeking to influence Government legislation and providing a voice for higher education institutions in the UK. Its chief executive says that UK universities are among the best in the world and have a vital role in supporting the UK economy and in promoting active citizenship.

“We’re up there with the best,” Baroness Warwick tells JISC Inform. “We’ve got a world-class reputation, not just in teaching and research but also for the support we provide for our students.

The new issue of JISC Inform which features an interview with Universities UK chief executive Diana Warwick, articles on open data, the latest news from JISC, and much more  

Supporting lifelong learning and widening participation are also key roles for the higher education sector, she claims, suggesting too that ICT has an important role to play in supporting these agendas. Citing as an example JISC’s work in the area of e-portfolios, which aims to support learners make the transition from school, to college, university and the workplace, Baroness Warwick claims ICT is an “essential supplement, both as learning resource and as an organisational tool” which can support many of the challenges that the higher education sector currently faces.

Along with this interview, the new issue of JISC Inform also includes a special feature on the question of open data. With vast amounts of data increasingly being generated by data-led science and research programmes, the storage, curation and preservation of those data become of central importance. However, the issue of making those data available for others to re-use also becomes a central question. Institutional repositories can store these data, making them available for others to access, to encourage collaboration or promote further new discoveries based on the same data. In addition, while printed journals cannot always include all the data on which articles and research papers are based due to lack of space, digital repositories can, by contrast, link research papers to all the data on which they are based as almost unlimited amounts of information can be accessed via the Internet.

Other articles in the new issue include features on new JISC briefing papers – on Open Source Software, and User Safety - plus new JISC agreements to make two online Shakespeare e-resources available, a feature on how Regional Support Centres are supporting HE courses taught in FE colleges, and news on a recently-published JISC e-learning publication which explores the growing use of mobile and wireless technologies in FE and HE

To access an online and text-only version of the new issue, please go to:  Inform Issue 12  

To order a print copy of the new Inform please e-mail: publications@jisc.ac.uk