In 2002/2003 Dr. Donald Laing (Education) and Don Snider (CFL) received a grant from the Ontario Knowledge Network for Learning (OKNL), a branch of the Ministry of Education, to develop a prototype learning object that provides an interactive learning experience for students on Ophelia, the heroine of Shakespeare’s Hamlet.

The successful completion of the prototype has encouraged OKNL to provide Laing and Snider with a $25,000 grant to complete the Ophelia learning object for use by secondary school teachers throughout the province.  Part of the grant will be used to produce original video clips of actors portraying three different interpretations of a scene from the play. Professor Michael Keating will direct a troop of student actors from the University’s drama department in the video production.

Dr. Laing said “The Ophelia project has been a challenging opportunity to explore ways of using technology to enhance the learning experience of students in the arts.  We are hopeful that it will give secondary school students throughout the province a new and exciting view of Ophelia and the play.”

The project is to be completed by September 2004.