JISC Strategic e-Content Alliance
publication date: Nov 1, 2006
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author/source: R Taylor
The aim of the Joint Information Systems Committee (JISC) is to provide leadership in the innovative use of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) in education. One of the most interesting projects it is currently funding is the Strategic e-Content Alliance (SECA), which aims to build a common information environment so that publicly funded e-content can be more widely used in education.
Some of the partners involved in SECA include BECTA, the British Library and the BBC. A key part of the three-year programme is looking at how major public sector organisations can coordinate their investment in developing e-content.
The rationale of SECA may be a nasty surprise for commercial organisations who also develop content for the UK education market as it aims to help, ‘citizens to realize their own potential - in the workplace, in their places of learning, and in the home - the full range of online content needs to be made available to all, quickly, easily and in a form appropriate to individuals' needs’.
This sounds remarkably like a re-run of the rationale behind BBC jam. Given that BBC jam has not met a key criterion for its approval by the DCMS - to make its content distinctly different from that offered by commercial producers - there seems to be little reason to believe that SECA will be any different given the players involved. JISC says its key stakeholders include, ‘Providers in the publishing and content provision industry, who are providing a range of e-content to the citizen’. Why then does it name every major government body involved, but no private sector organisations?
When the Digital Content Alliance still existed they railed against the proposed BBC Digital Curriculum, but were appeased by the caveats the DCMS put on what has become BBC jam. Given that these have been ineffective and that JISC’s latest ‘Calls for Proposals Roadmap’ (research budget ) is £15.8m, it’s entirely possible that the final cost of SECA could end up being as much as BBC jam and Curriculum Online. Not good news for investors in content companies.
Rather than focusing on independent schools and school uniforms, the OFT should start looking at programmes like SECA. Failing, that UK content companies could resurrect the Digital Learning Alliance, as we doubt JISC would be keen to have SECA examined by the courts?