Research Computing Services Digital Support Packs

Welcome to Research Computing Services

An introductory video that highlights what we do at the University of Melbourne

Using this Resource

This Digital Support Pack is intended as a resource to help students learn new digital tools and skills online. At Research Computing Services, we coordinate communities for a wide variety of digital tools for researchers.

This Digital Support Pack is for NVivo. NVivo is software that helps researchers manage mixed-methods and qualitative data. This support pack is split into several modules which can be completed either as a self-paced self-learning lab, or with the facilitation of a trainer via webinar software such as Zoom.

What is Blended Learning?

Blended learning is the combination of traditional student-centred in-class learning with other complementary learning methodologies. This resource is currently intended as an accessible alternative to in-class learning which has been made unavailable due to COVID-19. The modules blend written guides, engaging videos, and hands-on challenges. Online webinars aim to provide hands-on support and to reinforce the content of the modules. The in-class workshops focus on problem-based group challenges - which we hope to have maintained on this online resource.

Our Philosophy

We believe in community and empowering researchers. We believe in researchers helping researchers, and working smarter not harder. We avoid teaching as a death by PowerPoint, and we don't want you to learn new digital tools by watching a screen. Instead, we have faith in our students and focus on a problem-based pedagogical approach.

Learning new digital tools can be hard, especially when your research interests and methodologies are diverse and complex. As such, we firmly believe in supporting and empowering communities of researchers to help each other. Our trainers cannot answer all the questions that you might have about the applicability of digital tools to your research, but we hope that by creating a community of researchers that someone might be able to help you out.

Community

Our goal at Research Computing Services is to build communities of digitally empowered researchers at the University of Melbourne. Traditionally, we have created communities by running social events, and offering pathways for researchers to involve themselves in our communities. These community leaders we refer to as ResLeads, and over the years they've been involved in taking the lead on running meetups where we teach advanced digital skills, and in connecting with specific faculties at the University to tailor the tools to their needs. Online, things are a little different and this is certainly new territory for us.

For NVivo, we have set up a Facebook group where you can (hopefully) ask questions and receive help with the modules and other questions that you might have as a researcher. You can join that community here.

There is also a monthly NVivo newsletter to keep you up to date with what is happening in the community, and if there are any upcoming social events and opportunities. You can sign up for the newsletter here.