V-ResORT

Project description

Participants
The V-ResORT (Virtual Resources for Online Research Training) has worked with the Higher Education research training community to develop, evaluate and disseminate a new pedagogic framework for the teaching of research methodology and methods online at Masters and Doctoral level. It initially involved a University of Nottingham led consortium of four UK Universities, including the University of Sheffield, Bath and Canterbury Christ Church, but the Universities of Bristol, Cardiff, Lancaster, and Strathclyde have contributed materials.

Background
The project addresses the need to build capacity in UK research and to develop research skills training that acknowledges educational research as a complex, dynamic and diverse process. It incorporates new technologies to provide students with opportunities to engage with a wide range of researchers and to discuss methodological issues with experts. This provides an authentic context for engaging with theory and practice.

Outcomes that support teaching and learning:

A free to use website that contains

• Full video narratives of research in which Masters and Doctoral students and experienced researchers exploring their research against a standard conceptual framework which supports navigation through the materials
• Discussant video narratives provided by experienced researchers problematising aspects of research arising from the research video narratives
• Skills training in relation to the research approaches discussed in the research video narratives
• Indicative resources to support aspects of research methodology and methods, i.e. PowerPoint’s , books, web links etc.
• A search engine that enables users to locate video clips covering key aspects of research, i.e. ethical issues, analysis, data collection methods etc.

Research outcomes
The project involved action research into the design of a re-usable website that incorporates an ‘invented everywhere’ approach, the key features of which were:

• Strategically managed user engagement in the design process and the creation of the materials - one that progressively engages a variety of stakeholders
• Dissemination as a professional development process
• A pedagogic design that is flexible so that it engages both academics and students - one that allows use in lectures or seminars with a group of research students and yet is suited to individual self study.
• An effective technical specification that ensures a high quality resource that is motivating and fit for purpose, yet is robust.

Ongoing work
The project has received transferability funding from HEFCE to extend its work until December 2008. This will support the integration of the V-ResORT resources into a virtual graduate school for use across the Social Sciences, the incorporation of additional narratives from other universities and the development of the resource for use within Nursing and Health Studies.