TF-Media: Task Force on Applied Media in Teaching and Learning

Today, all public and private institutions are faced with the expectations of non technical users which have been created by the World Wide Web - the largest media network known to man. Internet services, roaming solutions, and the plethora of multi-media systems, tools, and applications are now openly, and often freely, available to all. Trying to come to terms with this rapidly developing paradigm is proving a challenge in a globalized world of National interests. These efforts, particularly in teaching and learning, will never converge, to offer users in public institutions the common collaboration platforms they demand, without unbiased guidance and open coordination.

National Research and Education Networks (NREN) members are in a good position to survey and analyse - in some cases develop, enhance and maintain – the special requirements of academic and research communities' changing multimedia needs. These needs are reconfiguring around the concept of co-production as opposed to the old broadcast (produce and deliver) model. For the worlds of education and research, which are always global, the way in which media is aggregated and disseminated between inter-institutional (disciplinary-centric) groups is proving particularly challenging.

The Task Force on Applied Media in Teaching and Learning builds on the mature relationship between NRENs and HEIs in Europe. It is established under the auspices of the TERENA Technical Programme to collect and share ideas, knowledge and experiences on how to support media applied to pedagogical (e-learning) as well as to research/scientific purposes.

Secretarial support for this task force is provided by TERENA with funding from the GN3 project.

(2010-2012) TF-Media: Task Force on Media Management and Distribution

The community of national research and education networking organisations (NRENs) has found that it is in a good position to provide audio and video recording, repository and distribution services to universities (where e.g., lectures can be recorded, archived and distributed), taking into account special requirements regarding quality, searchability, copyright, policy, etc.

The first TERENA workshop on Media Management and Distribution involved key players from NRENs and universities all around Europe. The goal was to identify their potential roles in developing this area, as well as the core group of researchers willing to work on the technical and administrative issues around those roles.

The initial workshop was held on 29-30 January 2009, in Zürich, Switzerland hosted by SWITCH, the Swiss NREN.

The outcome of the first workshop was that the collaboration among the NRENs to collect ideas, knowledge and experiences about technical and legal aspects of a federated multimedia production, management and distribution service on a pan-European scale is essential. TERENA has started to formulate a new task force on Media Management and Distribution issues called TF-Media.

The task force preparation meeting was held on 5-6 November 2009, in Prague, Czech Republic hosted by CESNET, the Czech NREN.

If you are designing, developing and/or deploying, operating, administrating multimedia production, management and distribution systems, services at your NREN or university and/or you are interested in the related collaboration, standardisation and legal issues, you are welcome to participate in the task force and share your experiences and ideas.

TF-Media details

Task Force Chair: Andy Zbinden (SWITCH)
Secretary: Peter Szegedi (TERENA)

Running period: January 2012 - December 2013

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