The New Curiosity Shop, an innovative online college based in Scotland, breaks new ground by hosting a virtual Open Week for online learners as part of Adult Learners´ Week and Silver Surfer Week (20th - 26th May 2006).

Although online learning is expanding in the schools and universities, it is still a bit of a mystery to most adult learners. This Virtual Open Week is a great opportunity for potential learners to get a taste for online learning, and find out how much fun it can be - it will be a chance to show that online learning can be as sociable an experience as any kind of learning.

As part of Adult Learners´ Week and Silver Surfer Week, visitors to The New Curiosity Shop website at http://www.newcurioshop.com   will be able to ‘meet´ with tutors to ask questions about their courses, either through text-based live chat sessions, or by chatting over a live Internet phone connection.

Visitors will also be able to try a selection of online learning activities specially devised for the event, and they will be able to explore a sample of the courses, with subjects including Archaeology, Forensic Psychology (ideal for Cracker or Rebus fans), Scottish History, Literature and Family History.

There will be a virtual area for visitors to mingle and meet, and there will be a free course called ‘How to Learn Online´ which is designed to reassure the nervous online learner and provide some valuable tips on learning - this will be especially welcome to anyone who has taken a long break from formal education.

Traditional colleges and universities have been running Open Days for years - it´s a good way to attract new students and to show off what they can do - we think it is about time that virtual colleges such as ours did the same. We are expecting visitors from all over the world as well as the UK to register, and join us for what should be a fascinating week.

Kids have all the fun at school nowadays: we think adult learning should be fun too, and online learning is a great way to learn at your own pace - we call it ‘learning for grown-ups´.

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