TCS project

The TCS project with Mackenzie Ward Research (mwr) was funded by the (former) Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) as part of the UK government's initiative to facilitate knowledge transfer between the higher education sector and industry.

Aims and objectives

The project aimed to benchmark and test a unique piece of learning software developed by mwr called 'Understand' for an array of individual projects in the tertiary education and the cultural heritage sectors - most prominently the Science Museum's Making the Modern World - Online project.

The tasks for the project were divided into four categories:

• Research into e-learning and its use in the museums and tertiary education sector
• Testing and recommending changes for 'Understand' software tools
• Documentation or management of the use of both 'Understand' software and the content that is created for 'Understand' packages
• Authoring, editing or making recommendations about content for specific packages created with Understand software.

Key findings

The benefits for the company included access through the appointment of a Research Associate in Learning and New Media to the expertise and experience of RCMG in the field of museum education and digital technology. Key outcomes from the project for RCMG included a series of seminars on e-learning presented in both professional and academic settings, and a series of research papers on the significance of 'situated learning' for on-line museum resources, the differences between classroom-based and in-gallery learning technologies and the permeation of digital media into gallery design.