1. Genetics Education Networking for Innovation and Excellence The Virtual Genetics Education Centre: networking, collaboration and innovation Mark Goodwin Cas Kramer, Nicola Suter-Giorgini and Annette Cashmore majg1@le.ac.uk

2. GENIE activities Range of project work: – teaching materials – outreach programme. Pedagogical research. Input into strategic policy making. National Network of genetics educators. VGEC: http://www.le.ac.uk/genetics/genie/vgec/ Virtual Genetics Education Centre

9. Current site Who?: teachers plus learners, general public. What?: evaluated open content, GENIE resources... – sector and topic – title, description, software, ‘approach’, age range. Why?: effective teaching materials – evaluation and sharing of good practice – networking, collaboration and innovation. Virtual Genetics Education Centre

10. Development Resources: open content, GENIE, Department, Network. Networking: resources, information... Collaboration: evaluation, development, commissioning. Innovation: – teaching approaches – teaching technologies – pedagogical research. Virtual Genetics Education Centre

11. Competition: ‘infodiversity’ Formal Content: OpenLearn, MIT OpenCourseWare... Finding content: Google, Intute, MERLOT, GLOBE. Subject-specific sites: biochem4schools, scibermonkey. Informal Online forums, blogs, wikis, email groups. Virtual Genetics Education Centre

12. Challenges Resources: quantity, quality and processes. Organisation: digital assets to learning design. Evaluation: context v. re-use, qualitative v. quantitative. Success factors: – use and audience – engagement – motivation. Virtual Genetics Education Centre