Education and Training in e-Social Science
National
Centre for
e-Social
Science
(NCeSS)
Rob Procter and Laura Bond
NCeSS
rob.procter|laura.bond@ncess.ac.uk
http://ncess.ac.uk
1st November, 2004
NeSC
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Overview
„
The e-Social Science research programme:
– Aims
– Structure
„
Education and training issues:
– Requirements
– Materials
– Content
„
Delivery:
–
–
–
–
Awareness raising workshops
Courses
Other mechanisms
Collaborations with other programmes
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National Centre for e-Social Science
„
Goals:
– To stimulate the uptake and use by social
scientists of new and emerging Grid-enabled
computing and data infrastructure, both in
quantitative and qualitative research
– Develop an e-social science culture that
pervades the research community
– Make the Grid as easy to use as the Web ..?
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National Centre for e-Social Science
„
Structure:
– Co-ordinating hub at Manchester/Essex
• established in April 2004
• three years in the first instance
– Research-based nodes
• CQeSS started September 2004
• 1st phase nodes will start in April 2005
• 2nd phase call to be announced later this year
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Role of NCeSS hub
„
One-stop shop:
– Expertise, training, technical support, data resources
– Portal – a single ‘front door’
„
Disseminate success:
– Pilot demonstrator projects
– Training materials
– Working papers, seminars, conferences, PhD summer
school
„
Foster collaboration:
– Between social scientists and Grid developers
– Between node research teams
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Requirements
„
Social scientists are largely unaware of the
potential offered by the Grid:
– They need examples of what might be achieved
„
Social scientists will need new conceptual and
technical skills to make the most of the Grid:
– They will need training in use of new tools
„
e-social science will lead to innovations in
research methods:
– Research methods training will need to be updated and
re-thought as the take up of the Grid increases
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Materials
„
A content strategy is under development:
– Topics
– Standards for authoring
„
Some materials will be generic, e.g.:
– Overview of a particular area, such as authentication and access control
mechanisms and policies
„
Some materials will be discipline or topic specific, e.g.:
– What Grid technologies can achieve in modelling decision making in
financial markets
„
Some materials will be sourced from demonstrator projects:
– Focus on attainable advances in social science research achievable by
deploying Grid infrastructure, rather than unrealised promise
„
Materials will be delivered in a variety of forms:
– PowerPoint presentations and accompanying notes, work-books and guides,
self-paced web based courses, both stand alone and delivered in a
managed learning environment
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Content generation
Pilot demonstrator projects
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
An Investigation of Disclosure Issues Posed by the Grid
Informing Business/Regional Policy: Grid Fusion of Global Data and
Local Knowledge
FINGRID: Financial INformation GRID
An OGSA Component-Based Approach to Middleware for
Statistical Modelling
Grid-Enabled Micro-Econometric Data Analysis
Hydra I Grid Based Spatial Planning Services
VIDGRID: Distributed Video Analysis With Grid Technologies
Collaborative Analysis of Offenders' Personal and Area-Based
Social Exclusion
Pilot Semantic Grid Service for Environmental Modelling
CONVERTGRID
Genealogies of Knowledge-Developing Anthropological Middleware
to Support Fieldwork-Based Social Science
1st November, 2004
NeSC
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Content generation
„
Resource Discovery for Researchers in eSocial Science (ReDReSS):
– Extends service provided by TRAMSS
(Teaching Resources and Materials for Social
Scientists) to make e-Science relevant to
social scientists
– Materials will use different media such as
online audio and video materials, real-time
software middleware demonstrations and
PowerPoint
„
ReDReSS is also looking at VLEs
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Content generation
Fast Track
„
„
„
Inform social scientists about effective use of
Access Grid
Create learning and teaching materials for online and workshop dissemination about Access
Grid and related collaborative tools
Create learning and teaching materials for online and workshop dissemination about use of
Grid technologies to solve social science
research problems
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Delivery
„
There is a clear and broad-based demand for structured training:
– 90% of respondents recognised a need to extend or refresh their
current skills base
– Distribution of responses was balanced across postgraduate students,
junior researchers and mid-career academics
„
Precise format of training is crucial to uptake:
– Audit demonstrated that whilst many researchers were keen to extend
their skills set, they were unable to access necessary training either at
all, or in a format that would fit in with other commitments
– Junior or mid career researchers preferred short-term courses or online training provision, postgraduate students were equally content with
longer courses, summer schools and placements
„
Audit highlighted need for intermediate and advanced training:
– Over two thirds of respondents were of the view that this is where
training intervention would be most desirable and useful
1st November, 2004
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Delivery: agenda setting workshops
„
Three scheduled so far:
– Digital Records and Representations of Human
Activities; Nottingham, 16th November
– Video Analysis; London, February/March
– The role of e-science in supporting new forms of
community; Manchester, June
„
Four more to be organised over the next 9
months:
–
–
–
–
Theory
Quantitative methods
Text mining
Confidentiality, ethics
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Delivery: other mechanisms
Tutorials run at the annual e-Social
Science conference
„ Annual PhD summer school:
„
– Involving a mix of presentations by
leading e-social scientists, emonstrations,
technical training and hands-on sessions.
„
Visiting fellowship scheme:
– To spend time at the hub, either for
several months or several shorter visits
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Collaborations: National Centre for Research Methods
„
NCRM’s training
plans include:
– Support training
in research design
– Encourage training
in integrated
methods
– Support training
of trainers
„
NCeSS and NCRM
will:
– Share
understanding of
training
requirements
– Share training
materials,
expertise
– Develop materials
and courses
1st November, 2004
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Collaborations: Research Methods Programme
„
„
RMP
organises
various
training
events
NCeSS and
RMP will
work
together to
deliver
content and
courses.
1st November, 2004
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Collaborations: NeSC, egee, NDCC
„
We would
like to
explore what
training
issues and
requirements
we have in
common with
NeSC/egee/
NDCC.
1st November, 2004
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Some open questions
„
Standards:
– Content description
– Content creation
„
Delivery platforms:
– Current offerings
– VLEs
„
IPR:
– But isn’t e-science all about sharing ..?
1st November, 2004
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