College signs e-deal

The College of Law has signed an initial 500,000 deal to provide e-learning options for law students and trainee solicitors.However, the college intends to extend the facility for on-line study to all the courses it offers nationally and internationally to law students and qualified lawyers after agreeing the deal with learning and business services group AdVal.The College said the move would allow more students to earn as they learn by combining a job with learning.

Students will be able to communicate with each other and their tutors through chat-rooms and discussion forums.

There will also be virtual classrooms.The initial contracts include the development of electronic and Web-based training for the legal practice course and the professional skills course.The wide-ranging agreement covers the development of electronic training both on-line and off-line, the design and development of a learning portal to put into effect the delivery and use of on-line training and related support services, and the marketing, distribution and sale of products either solely owned by the college or jointly developed with AdVal.Professor Nigel Savage, the colleges chief executive, said: The market has huge potential in terms of assisting global firms to use education and training as a means of creating genuine global practices.