The Virtual Graduate School project at Sheffield is enhancing research training through the development of a research portal (via WebCT) with online research training modules, a wrap-around with resources, tools and Web 2.0 technologies and online support for research supervisors. The aim of the Virtual Graduate School (VGS) is to acknowledge the diversity of researchers through the provision of flexible learning and online support for the research task, particularly for researchers working in remote location and international settings.
In its first year, the VGS is developing 6 online exemplars in the Social Sciences and will extend to another faculty in Year 2. An innovative feature of the VGS is the development of multimedia instantiations of research through case studies of video narratives involving academics, students and experts, with a capacity for personalization to the research interests of individuals. The presentation will demo some content from our online Research Writing module and will highlight the organizational, pedagogic and technological challenges we have experienced so far.
