Anna Said:

UK based; any schemes recommended for self teaching spanish?

We Answered:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/languages/spanish/
http://freelanguage.org/learn-spanish/bb…

Ricardo Said:

Does anyone know of a reliable website where I can get good A-level media studies teaching resources (for UK)?

We Answered:

http://www.mediaknowall.com/as_alevel/al…

Andy Said:

help///how can I make an animation like this...i need them before jan. 16.. =(.. please click the urls below..

We Answered:

I don't know if there is any specific software for this, but The Gimp can make animated gifs. It's also free and runs on Windows, Mac, Linux, and maybe a few other systems. You could make each frame slightly differently so when it is animated it does something like that. The frames should look similar to this:
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_/___

/____

Melanie Said:

What resources are available to anyone wanting to set up a creative writing course?

We Answered:

I'm doing a creative writing course at the moment. Can I just say, I would absolutely love to be part of a course focused on science fiction and fantasy :) that's a great idea, and I hope you get plenty of people going to it.

Well, you'll need plenty of example of the genre, and these are in abundance. You could maybe provide example of novels which employ fantasy/sci-fi clichés (the Warhammer novels spring to mind) and compare them to better, fresher fantasy.

A basic grammar book is a must - obviously in a creative writing workship you don't want to spend too much time going over this, as everyone should already be aware of the basics. However, it can be handy to have a few photocopied pages of info about where to put commas/apostrophes etc.

This is also a handy book: http://fictionwriting.about.com/od/revie… although the internet's probably overtaken it now.

My tutor also had a few pages from a book about the technical side of creative writing (i.e. describing what "voices" were used in novels etc) but I can't remember where she got it from. If I remember, I'll send it to you in a message or something, if you like?

Hope that helped a little.

Grace Said:

What is an RAE rating with regard to universities?

We Answered:

The main purpose of the Research Assessment Exercise (RAE) is to enable the higher education funding bodies to distribute public funds for research selectively on the basis of quality. Institutions conducting the best research receive a larger proportion of the available grant so that the infrastructure for the top level of research in the UK is protected and developed. The RAE assesses the quality of research in universities and colleges in the UK. It takes place every four to five years and the next exercise will be held in 2001. Around £5 billion of research funds will be distributed in response to the results of the 2001 RAE.

The RAE provides quality ratings for research across all disciplines. Panels use a standard scale to award a rating for each submission. Ratings range from 1 to 5*, according to how much of the work is judged to reach national or international levels of excellence. Higher education institutions (HEIs) which take part receive grants from one of the four higher education funding bodies in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Outcomes are published and so provide public information on the quality of research in universities and colleges throughout the UK. This information clearly has a much wider value than its immediate purpose. For example, it can be helpful in guiding funding decisions in industry and commerce, charities and other organisations that sponsor research. It also gives an indication of the relative quality and standing of UK academic research. Furthermore, the RAE provides benchmarks which are used by institutions in developing and managing their research strategies. Across the UK as a whole, research quality as measured by the RAE has improved dramatically over the last decade.