Gruppo 62 Italian Project Undergraduate Collaboration Universities of Hull & Leeds SIS, Cork, July 2003

Project Team Project manager: George Talbot Web developer: Kathryn Cheshir Writers Catherine Keen, Brian Richardson, George Talbot, Pamela Williams & Dick Andrews Funding UCML (HEFCE)

G62 aims build on regional collaboration for the promotion of Italian studies maintain & enhance breadth of curriculum advance development of C&IT tools for learning and teaching

G62 objectives topic-based modules Italian culture, history, lang. & lit. enhance elements of existing modules issue(s) of inter-institutional modules

G62 topics History & Culture of Medieval Italy History & Culture of Renaissance Italy Linguistic Variety in Modern Italy

G62 issues arising teaching students at different levels putting the learning materials to different kinds of uses vexed question of Virtual Learning Environments (VLEs)

The Problem: VLE options Blackboard MERLIN (Hull) Bodington Common (Leeds)

G62 : VLE pros and cons corporate identity communication with students multi-site learning community whose identity? motivation and commitment? does it work in the single campus setting?

G62 solution to VLE problem place the learning material in a closed- access website let students access this material from their familiar VLE => open-ended

Benefits Image handling Audio (and video) files Flexibility

The Future Evaluation Maintaining and developing Model for materials exchange scheme? Disseminating best practice Identifying future users