News in brief

Bridging the divide

The Open University is working in partnership with locallibraries and online centres to help its students get internetaccess for learning. A pilot project, called Bridging the DigitalDivide, involves libraries and online centres in 10 English citiesproviding access to computers and support for part-time studentswith no internet access at home. If the six-month pilot issuccessful the scheme will be expanded further across the UK.

'Fossil Detectives' kit

If you don't know an ammonite from a trilobite, help is at hand.The Open University has produced a fossil kit with authenticreplicas of 12 fossils ranging from a dinosaur tooth to anichthyosaur snout and a reptile foot. Created to accompany the OU/BBC series Fossil Detectives it aims to give fossil hunters andcollectors the chance to study museum-quality samples at closerange. The kit is available through Open University Worldwide atwww.ouw.co.uk

Free for schools

A free resource pack is on offer for schools which uses clipsfrom three TV series to stimulate lessons on different cultures. TheDVD pack draws on the recent Open University/BBC Four series AfricanSchool, Indian School and Chinese School and was created by the OU,the BBC and Lion Television. It is part of the British Council'sConnecting Classrooms programme. Interested schools in the UK andoverseas can get a copy by emailing Diane Morris at diane.morris-MK@bbc.co.uk