Innovation3 - further round of funding secured

JISC TechDis has been notified by the Learning and Skills Council (LSC England) that a further £1,000,000 of capital funding to improve the use and take-up of ILT has been granted for the Independent Specialist Colleges sector for the new academic year (O9/10).

As in previous years JISC TechDis will be administering the distribution of this funding on the basis outlined below.

Infrastructure Funding – half of the funding will be available to improve the hardware and software infrastructure. JISC TechDis is also working closely with Natspec, JISC RSCs, LSIS and Becta with regard to the support required to further the strategic planning processes within Specialist Colleges.

Provision of access to the In-Folio application - the recently launched In-Folio (the Specialist Colleges’ e-folio system) has the capability to provide a system for the storage and delivery of multimedia materials. The In-Folio application is currently available to colleges by means of accounts hosted on servers provided by the Rix Centre (http://www.rixcentre.org/) and funded by the LSC for the rest of the current academic year. It is intended to expand the options to this application by the provision of a server with software installed and additional support which will result in improved security of the colleges’ data. However colleges may opt to bid for an alternative package which is offered to ensure that the In-Folio application may be hosted and supported by a third party.

Provision of specialist technical and network support - as it is recognised that many colleges are small with limited technical support it is intended to arrange a limited consultancy service to offer technical advice working with the JISC RSCs and within the JANET UK Service.

The announcement letter is available to download Funding Announcement Letter 20 August 2009 (doc - 96 KB).

The Independent Specialist Colleges Invitation to Bid letter and proforma can be downloaded from here Invitation to Bid (doc - 93 KB); Innovation3 Bid Proforma (doc - 101 KB).

 

Previous Rounds of Innovation Funding

The Innovation Fund

JISC TechDis, in conjunction with the LSC and JISC Organisational Support, funded a series of small projects designed to encourage the innovative use of ILT and e-learning within Independent Specialist Colleges. A total of 27 projects were funded across 22 colleges and covered a wide range of technologies in four main areas:

• Infastructure, including replacing outdated equipment and installing wireless networks.
• College Platforms, including the use of VLEs and MIS systems.
• Content Creation, including the creation of age-appropriate learning resources and the innovative use of technologies such as Global Positioning Systems.
• Multimedia Equipment, including the use of interactive whiteboards and audio and video resources.
  

These projects were completed in July 2006 and a publication containing details of the projects entitled Specialist Colleges: Specialists in Innovation will be launched at the NATSPEC conference on 24th May 2007. A detailed report, produced by Glenaffric, is available to download below.

The Innovation Fund Full Report (PDF - 317 KB)

Innovation2

Innovation 2 followed on from the previous year's very successful Innovation Fund programme. This opportunity encouraged similar initiatives, with particular emphasis on embedding the good practice released by the projects into mainstream practice, and encouraged its spread to other colleges.

Colleges were asked to bid for funding for projects utilising ILT and e-learning in innovative ways for the benefit of staff and students. JISC TechDis encouraged colleges to produce innovative and useful work and to share their expertise with other colleges and the learning community. The JISC TechDis Service is especially interested in the way that innovative activities have become embedded in mainstream practice within colleges, and how that practice spreads to others throughout the sector and beyond into mainstream FE in order to benefit the majority of students with disabilities who learn there.

Overall funding of £200,000 was available divided into varying levels of funding in order to allow for projects of different sizes. Innovation2 was open to all Specialist Colleges with an approved or pending ILT strategy.

Bidding closed on 21st March 2007. The scheme proved hugely popular, with 71 bids from 33 colleges requesting a total of almost £780,000! Bids were marked in spring 2007 and all funds have now been distributed.

The projects fall into four main categories:

College platforms

This included a collaborative project between several colleges looking at the creation of an e-portfolio that meets the specific requirements of an Independent Specialist College.

Content Creation

This included the adaptation of materials to suit particular groups of learners, for example the production of switch-based or signed resources, as well as the use of technologies such as weatherstations and GPS systems.

Infrastructure

Infrastructure projects in this round included the purchase of tablet PCs to allow interactive learning resources to be used around the college and the use of touch screen monitors to provide information points and canteen ordering facilities.

Multimedia Equipment

Including the use of video conferencing between colleges and digital video cameras with editing suites allowing staff and students to create multimedia materials.