NFDI4Memory
NFDI4Memory
The project is developing concepts and standards for the storage, accessibility and quality assurance of historical research data. It also aims to establish and disseminate data literacy within disciplines working in the field of history.
| Project lead: | Prof. Dr Stefan Schmunk |
| Project team: | Stefan Büdenbender |
| Duration: | March 2023 to February 2028 |
| Funding body: | DFG – German Research Foundation |
| Participating institutions: |
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NFDI4Memory is one of 26 specialist consortia of the National Research Data Infrastructure e.V. (NFDI). Drawing on digitised and digital data as well as digital methods, the consortium is opening up new avenues for historical research by introducing and establishing digital infrastructures and services for research data, and by promoting their potential applications. NFDI4Memory identifies key innovations for the discipline of history in the digital age and promotes their development in order to integrate them into existing structures and processes and ensure their widespread acceptance within the historical community.
Almost 80 institutions are involved in NFDI4Memory, including universities, higher education institutions, non-university research institutes, museums, archives and libraries, as well as information infrastructure organisations.
Project progress
Darmstadt University of Applied Sciences is participating as a funded “co-applicant” alongside colleagues from the University of Trier, Prof. Dr Ursula Lehmkuhl and Marina Lemaire, and is playing a key role in coordinating the Data Literacy workstream ( Task Area 4: Data Literacy). The team has set itself the task of specifically promoting data literacy in research and teaching within the historical disciplines – and thereby making a key contribution to shaping the digital transformation in the humanities.
The focus is on two work packages, which they are coordinating and carrying out in collaboration with experts from the Free University of Berlin and the University of Trier:
Work Package 1, Data Literacy Training, aims to promote data literacy in study programmes and teaching. The team is developing innovative training modules, materials and syllabuses to improve the teaching of data literacy within degree programmes. The work involves developing training modules, a model curriculum and setting up an accreditation service for training materials.
Workstream 4 is developing services to support digital research and teaching. Based on a comprehensive needs assessment carried out in the first year of the project on the topic of data literacy , the project team is developing a network of regional training centres to train multipliers, an advisory service to support researchers, and to implement appropriate research data management and work with digital tools and methods.
Services and Community Engagement
In addition, the team is involved in numerous expert panels, such as the Edutrain section or the UAG Training/Continuing Professional Development of the DINI/nestor Working Group on Research Data, and engages in dialogue with university lecturers within the newly established “Teaching Working Group”. Together with the joint project Hermes , it is also actively involved in shaping standards for Open Educational Resources as part of the “OER.Net” group.
In the short and medium term, a number of specific measures are in the pipeline or have already been completed:
- Histocat, an online catalogue of teaching and learning materials adapted for educational purposes for disciplines working in the field of history
- a basic course in research data management
- a collection of sample datasets that enables the teaching of methodological knowledge and the use of specific tools using real research data
- From Books to Bytes: The ‘From Books to Bytes’ series of events regularly presents the latest news and relevant fields of application in talks by and with experts, researchers and teaching staff. Following brief thematic introductions, participants are given the opportunity to explore the presented content independently in hands-on sessions and to discuss the results in detail within the academic community. The event is open to all interested parties; furthermore, the lectures are regularly posted on our YouTube channel and on Zenodo .
Aim
The aim is to strengthen the community across the board – from students and teaching staff to researchers and staff in museums, libraries, archives and infrastructure organisations – in the long term, and to prepare them for the challenges and opportunities of an increasingly data-driven academic landscape. Through a diverse range of opportunities, workshops, digital teaching and learning methods, and resources available for individual use, the consortium supports and promotes the development and further enhancement of digital skills. Whether it be the fundamentals of data modelling, digital source criticism or research-oriented data management – it provides impetus, connects expertise and creates spaces for exchange and professional development.
Results
Key needs within the community have already been identified during the course of the project – including through a survey on data literacy in disciplines working with history. On this basis, training formats tailored to specific target groups have been developed, including the hands-on digital series ‘From Books to Bytes’, which provides practical guidance on working with digital data formats. Further initiatives to promote data literacy are in the planning stage and are intended to strengthen the community in the long term.
Further links
Project team
Darmstadt University of Applied Sciences
Project Leader: Prof. Dr Stefan Schmunk
Co-ordination/Research Assistants: Dr Stefan Büdenbender, Jacob Benz
University of Trier
Project Leader: Prof. Dr Ursula Lehmkuhl
Coordination/Research assistance: Marina Lemaire, Laura Döring, Stefan Kellendonk
Free University of Berlin
Coordination/Research Assistance: Dr Brigitte Grote, Anne Voigt
