Building the Network

istics a gu nd in A L , r s e a e g S Issue 3 a t u u d g July 2001 i n e a s L ISSN - 1472-6432 S ub re ject Cent Languages, Linguistics and Area Studies Contents Building the Network 1 Building the Network 2 Subject Review Mike Kelly (Subject Centre Director) reports on the outcomes of our 3 Specialist Group News first year of operation. 4 News from CILT 5 C & IT News Working together, we can achieve more than any one of us can 6-7 Learning and Teaching manage separately.This is basic reason for the co-operation within the with Technology academic community, and the rationale for the LTSN network. It does 8 Benchmarking Update not abolish competition between universities, but it does offer an Other News underlying sense of our common purpose. For this reason, the Subject 9-10 FDTL Languages Update Centre places a high priority on facilitating co-operation. By 11 FDTL Area Studies Update European Year of Languages combining our strengths across institutions, we shall be able to 12 Talking Point:Area Studies respond more effectively to the challenges we all face. and Postnationalism 13 Needs Survey Results Over the next three years, the Subject Centre, extend these events in the coming year, in an therefore, has the strategic aim of becoming the key expanded programme, which will also include visits 14 Thematic Network Project meeting point for developing co-operation and to individual institutions to exchange ideas and 15 Subject Centre Roadshows networking.We shall aim to develop our work of examples of good practices. 16 Forthcoming Events bringing together individuals, departments, It will also include what we hope will be a major associations and other organisations in the areas of conference in the summer term of 2002. languages, linguistics and area studies. And we shall broaden the network to include colleagues in other subjects and other countries.The main point of this is to enhance learning and teaching, focusing on issues of pedagogy, but also including organisational issues such as academic leadership, student recruitment and policy frameworks. In our first year or so of existence we have made a Want to contact us? good start, and plan to build on this with the help and support of our academic community. In practical Email address for enquiries : terms this involves a range of activities. [email protected] Making contacts Telephone: 023 8059 4814 Mike Kelly at the Stirling Roadshow, January 2001. We have established an extensive list of contacts, Fax: 023 8059 4815 who receive this newsletter and mailings about our Co-operating in development Website address: activities. Our aim will be to make this a We have worked closely with a number of existing http://www.lang.ltsn.ac.uk comprehensive list, keep it up-dated and regularly projects, including FDTL (Fund for the Development send out relevant information.We will also develop of Teaching and Learning) and TLTP (Teaching and the online and printed contact information on Learning Technology Programme) projects, some of individuals, departments and organisations working whom have disseminated their results in our in our subject areas.You can already see quite a lot workshops and roadshows.We are also involved in of this on our website and in the Information sheets planning a number of development projects and produced for us by Dawn Ebbrell at CILT. other initiatives.These include a project with UCML Meeting each other to pilot a number of different approaches to collaboration. At the time of writing, we are hoping We have organised a number of meetings and other that HEFCE will shortly agree to fund this three year events, which have provided opportunities to project, involving a dozen collaborative sub-projects. Edited by Alison Dickens develop networking and collaboration. Some of If it does, it will be one of the most wide-ranging these are reported elsewhere in this newsletter. In Designed by Stuart Packard and ambitious initiatives to promote academic co- addition to meetings of our three Specialist Groups @ Magic9 - 07790 262688 operation in the UK, and will result in a number of and Advisory Board, we have held a series of Printed by Test Valley Group new networks as well as new resources available to seminars and workshops, and a programme of - 01794 835500 the whole academic community. Roadshows in Scotland,Wales and Northern [email protected] Ireland; we have facilitated meetings on Another initiative, taken jointly with UCML, aims to Telephone: 023 8059 4814 benchmarking issues; and we have held information develop an online resource bank for language Fax: 023 8059 4815 sessions at our centres in CILT and Hull.We plan to learning, aimed at promoting languages as a key graduate skill, for students not specialising in languages.This is network of relationships with universities, associations, also linked with plans to develop language learning networks at government bodies, and even private sector organisations such local level across the different sectors of education.These as publishers and broadcasters. At this stage, the willingness to proposals for 'e-languages' are in the preliminary stages of co-operate is abundant, and considerably outweighs the desire planning with HEFCE, but have received strong support from to compete. the academic community and from a number of potential Education is an important component of the new knowledge- partners, including the embassies of France, Germany, Spain based society, and co-operation is well recognised within the and Italy. knowledge economy as a crucial strategy for achieving better Wider partnerships use of our resources and a big extension to our traditional markets. It stimulates innovation and enables us to meet We have begun to establish partnerships with other national diverse needs. Co-operation only appears to be limited by our and international bodies working in our subject areas.We are imagination and by the resources we have at our disposal. By fortunate to be able to work with a number of very working together, we can expand both. supportive subject associations in the UK, and have excellent relations with wider European associations, such as the European Language Council, CERCLES and EUROCALL.We have appreciated the warm support of the cultural services of embassies, and we have developed good working relations with several government agencies, including QAA. We plan to build and extend these links in the coming years. We can already see the huge potential of the LTSN network, which connects us to colleagues in other subject areas, and with a great deal of generic expertise.The first steps have been taken to link the five Arts and Humanities Subject Centres, who share cognate academic interests. Other groupings are also in prospect, for example, to address the broad interdisciplinary scope of area studies, or to share experience between subjects that are suffering student recruitment difficulties (an issue common to languages and the hard sciences), or who share a particular concern for part-time staff. Having put co-operation firmly on our own agenda, we have been amazed to discover how many open doors are now Getting down to some serious work at the Stirling Roadshow. beckoning.We can look forward to developing a growing Subject Review: the calm before the storm Mike Kelly reports TQA is a receding memory of the mid-nineties, and Subject weeks ago by announcing the scaling down of QAA, and of the Reviews are fast approaching: already upon us for some review programme. Not all departments will be visited, though colleagues in Scotland, and promised for 2003-06 for most of all are expected to produce a self-assessment.The implications our disciplines in England. As part of the process of helping of the change have not been fully worked out, and Fiona Crozier departments to prepare for review, we have been glad to host signalled several resulting areas of uncertainty. Press reports have presentations at our Subject Centre Roadshows by Fiona suggested that pressure came from the Prime Minister, and that Crozier, Assistant Director of QAA. Her very clear and helpful deals have been struck with vice-chancellors. explanations have been useful in raising awareness and allaying Uncertainties have now increased. Government policies were fears about the process. It is now clear that this is the calm put into suspended animation by the general election, and before the storm in two senses. higher education has taken a low profile in the campaign.The In the first sense, this period provides an opportunity for DFEE has just undergone a change of Minister, and the largest departments to gear up, and prepare themselves for the funding council (HEFCE) awaits a change of Chief Executive. onslaught of review.The new procedures are now piloted and There is a definite air of unfinished business, which feels rather fully documented. For those who want to know about them, like the calm before the policy storm. there are no secrets and plenty of advice. Preparing the Can the down-sized QAA survive in its present form? Will the departmental self-assessment and supporting evidence is likely cut-down subject review be the last word on 'light touch'? Will to be hard work but at least it is a known quantity.With RAE the broader academic community be invited to consult on submissions out of the way, departments will be able to focus how all this might develop? on QAA requirements, preferably getting their responses well As things stand, heads of department might be forgiven for bedded down in departmental practice in advance of review. holding their fire on subject review until the picture swims The benchmarking reports, necessary reference documents, more clearly into focus.

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