JISC

Start date: 1 November 2004

End date: 31 October 2007

Funding programme: Virtual Research Environments programme (phase 1)

Project website: http://www.uea.ac.uk/his/research/projects/vre/

JISC theme(s): e-Research

Forty years ago the history of political discourse focused on the development of ‘key ideas’ in political philosophy and built on the intensive study of a limited number of canonical texts. In the mean time the subject has been, and continues to be, transformed. Amongst the developments here are:

• supplementation of the narrowly philosophical/legal approach through the study of linguistic and cultural contexts
• expansion of the range of material under consideration to include not only formal treatises but manuscript as well as printed texts, petitions, legal depositions and rulings, speeches, broadsides, satires, newsbooks, bodily gestures and iconography
• a new historical sociology of the political and administrative structures of the early modern state and its development
• fresh approaches to the discursive resources of early modern society including scribal, print, written, oral and translations
• increasing recognition of the importance of the trans-national transmission of ideas and patterns of discourse

The growth of the subject has been paralleled by the evolution in technologies. A significant body of material is either created, stored or accessed electronically. The partners in this project have made significant steps in enhancing the use of both printed and manuscript resources particularly in the teaching area through JISC funded projects such as Virtual Norfolk, Artworld and other initiatives in the humanities such as the development of the Archive HUB.  

The integration of the vast range of electronic resources is being undertaken from the nationally available resources as well as from the electronic offerings of the publishers.  

Consequently the range of expertise and materials for the adequate and appropriate study of the phenomena has expanded and made collaboration in research and research skills development essential and beyond the resources of any single HE department in the field.  

The current proposal is to launch a continuing collaboration, initially between two institutions but with provision for the rapid expansion of participating partners.

The VRE will also provide:

• A range of collaboration opportunities, building on the recently released SAKAI framework.
• A framework for the integration of some of the resource discovery tools available in the HE community.
• Links to video-conferencing facilities
• Testing of the relevance of Access Grid technology in a humanities environment
• Seminars and publication facilities both face to face and on-line

Aims and Objectives  

The project aims to develop a virtual research and research skills development environment, capable of expansion and of facilitating multiple participation in the rapidly evolving field of the history of political discourse. The environment includes the technical and cultural support necessary to deliver substantial and transferable value from the project. The project offers an opportunity to bring into being an exemplar for the humanities approximating to the more advanced collaboration models available in the sciences.  

Over the three years of funding, the project will:

• Set up and pilot the postgraduate research and teaching programme (see below), enhancing the value of on-line resources and maximising the potential of dispersed academic expertise and student demand.
• Explore the potential of the ‘Access Grid’, as a potential platform for collaboration.
• Ensure that open and transferable technical platforms are in place for access to resources, virtual research environments, academic interchanges and publications.
• Deliver a set of software tools where required, guidelines and support tools to the community on an open source basis.
• Deliver a series of virtual and actual seminars, symposia and conferences led by both academics and research students
• Roll out the programme to a number of other HE institutions in the UK by the end of the programme.
• Produce reports analysing the technical and pedagogic outcomes and their implications for other VRE projects especially in the humanities.

Project Partners  

The lead institution, the University of East Anglia (School of History), will be working closely with its project partner, the University of Hull (Dept. of History).