This Unit has operated as part of Information Systems Services since 1st August 1994. Many of you know of our role in coordination of the ESRC Information Technology and Education Research Programme (InTER) during the 1980's and our involvement in creating (in 1991) NEUROPE LAB, a European Research Laboratory just outside Geneva on the International Business Park at Archamps, France. KTRU is closely associated with the CSALT group at Lancaster University, it is also the editorial 'home' of the Journal of Computer Assisted Learning.
The main focus of the research is on the use of ICT to support the exchange of professional knowledge. For example, the JITOL project was able to prototype tools and methods for knowledge sharing using a strong metaphor for typical human behaviour in collaborative working, research and learning. There was an emphasis on the elicitation of informal, contextual knowledge present in professional activities. This was based on asynchronous communication which, in addition to modest cost, gives time for reflection about the most appropriate intervention. What is still to be ascertained is the generalisability of such a metaphor and its evolution with greater functionality demanded by other communities.
Much of this work has been concerned with creating access to knowledge by people who are working off-Campus with WAN access. However, some of the principles and methodologies are being applied to broader band access over LANs on-Campus.
Other current or recent research projects include:
· Just-in-Time Open Learning (JITOL) - an EC DGXIII project under the DELTA programme
· Virtual Mobility and Distributed Laboratories (VMDL) - an EC DGXII Human Capital and Mobility network
Negotiating European Credit Representation and Recognition (NECTAR) - an EC DGXIII project under the DELTA programme
Models for telematics-based open and distance learning (MECPOL) an EC Socrates ODL project
Learning in Humans and Machines, Task Force 5 on Collaborative Learning - a European Science Foundation initiative
KTR Unit Team members at Lancaster are: