Hello,
There will be a GEM session at this year's mda conference. This will take
place on Thursday 7th September at Newcastle University. Summaries of the 5
speakers are included below to tempt you along - Thursday is also late night
shopping in toon, so why not make a day & night of it?

If you would like further details, please contact France Bycroft @ mda:

[log in to unmask]
Tel:    +44 1223 315760
Fax:    +44 1223 362521
www.mda.org.uk/ 


mda Conference 2000, Newcastle University
GEM session - Thursday 7th September,  11.30am - 1pm


Audience centred ICT projects at London's Transport Museum
Ruth Singer, Interpretation Officer, London's Transport Museum
London's Transport Museum is committed to widening access to its collections
through ICT. We have several projects in development to give access to a
wide audience from specialist researchers to families, ranging from gallery
touch screens generated by the collections management database, to a
family-friendly website and a new learning centre within the museum. I will
discuss a selection of key projects such as a learning package on 19th and
20th century London history which is available on our website for
independent adult learners and our collections database, the InfoZone which
gives guided access to several key collections and subjects.


Lessons learned - DfEE ICT projects reviewed
Ben Spencer, Museums and Galleries Development Officer, The Learning
Circuit, University of Surrey Roehampton
The Learning Circuit (TLC) is an organisation based at Surrey University,
Roehampton, which specialises in innovative educational use of Information
Communication Technology (ICT). In spring this year the Department for
Education and Employment (DfEE) funded nine web-based Museum education
projects which have been supported by Ben Spencer from The Learning Circuit.
This session provides an overview of the approaches taken and the lessons
learnt by projects with a wide range of content and size.  These have
included the use of Think.com, a powerful web-based communication tool
developed by Oracle on the basis of research into effective ICT  learning. 


Resources for digital learning
Iain Watson, Durham Studies Manager, Arts, Libraries and Museums Department,
Durham County Council. 
Museums provide access to information as well as objects - information to be
consumed on or off the premises. This paper will describe developments in
Durham since 1994 providing high quality digital local studies resources and
how they have been rolled out to learning communities. The resources
developed have been presented in a straightforward database format, but with
very simple controls, as opposed to developing highly mediated information.
Local photographs and maps are a particularly strong motivator for learning
to take place, particularly with older learners and in informal settings.
The paper will concentrate on The Durham Record project but refer to
websites developed through the MGC/DCMS project, the current DfEE funded
project at Killhope, The North of England Lead Mining Centre, the new dli
website to be launched with the refurbished museum and gallery in Summer
2000, and the regional Tomorrow's History project.


Title:  tbc
Denny Plowman, Nottingham City Museums and Galleries, Access Team
The nub of the presentation will be to discuss some principles
interpretation in art galleries and  museums, to consider some solutions to
the problems that we encounter in accommodating diverse audiences and to use
the Nottingham interactive as an illustration of one approach to these
challenges. It won't be deeply meaningful nor academic but might, I hope,
provoke some thoughts on how ITC  might be used beyond collections databases
and web sites. 


The Museum of Antiquities, ICT and Education
Jo Catling, Education Officer, Museum of Antiquities, Newcastle University
Ever since the Museum of Antiquities first established a presence on the
internet in June 1995, it has been keen to explore the potential of this
medium as an educational tool.  This paper seeks to examine some of the ways
in which the Museum has expanded and developed its website, as well as
looking at a range of other ICT projects that the Museum has been involved
in.  The impact of the Museum's web pages on the overall education service
provided by the Museum will also be evaluated.


For all information, contact:

Frances Bycroft, e-mail: [log in to unmask]

Tel:    +44 1223 315760
Fax:    +44 1223 362521
www.mda.org.uk/ 




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