About Us

The "Zentrum Netzwerk Medien" at the Faculty of Human Sciences at the University of Cologne was founded in 2000 as a service and research institution, building on the work of various predecessor organizations.

As a center of expertise, we offer services and instruction related to media. In addition, the Center has years of experience in the development and evaluation of teaching and learning media and offers events and courses on various topics relevant to media education and media didactics.

Media production is divided into the areas of film production, photography, and graphic design, and offers a wide range of services for faculty and students in the field of media. A key focus of this area is the production of educational and documentary films, staff photos, and the creation of graphics and designs. Additionally, the editorial team covers current topics for the #News from the Faculty section.

This knowledge is passed on to students in courses within the Studium Integrale program or through the master’s program module in the Special Education program titled “Media Use in Inclusive Education.”

Here, the years of experience from the research units that merged are utilized for the development and evaluation of rehabilitative learning and support software. In addition to the new development of a computer-based cognitive training program, support programs are being developed here for written calculation methods (e.g., Euro Mulli and Euro-Divi), for reading and spelling support (e.g., ALPHI, Wortwerkstatt), and multimedia support for a reading course for people with intellectual disabilities (e.g., Lesen mit Lo). Currently, a number of older programs are being re-released with a new user interface. However, this work is not yet complete, as the center was and remains heavily involved in the reorganizations associated with the establishment of the Faculty of Human Sciences. In addition, the Center not only ensures instruction in computer-assisted teaching and learning but also offers additional media-related courses each semester designed to train students in the use of media. 

The Media Network Center also offers a wide range of services at the faculty level. In the IT Service, the expertise of the network’s staff is utilized to support colleagues with IT questions and to assist them in the event of technical issues. The faculty’s website is also hosted here.

In addition, the Media Network Center develops online courses and provides the necessary infrastructure for them. Specific intranet features such as mailing list interfaces, online course registration forms, online trouble reports, and download areas for lecture notes and slides increase the frequency of use and acceptance of new media among students and faculty. This makes a practical contribution to optimizing the duration of studies. Information on future developments and new opportunities can be found under the Projects section. 

All staff members work closely together across research, development, service, and teaching to provide students and faculty with an appropriate platform for using media.

Learning Lab

The Learning Lab focuses primarily on researching learning culture; the design and testing of learning environments constitute a significant part of its scope of services. It offers students and teachers already active in schools the opportunity to engage hands-on with teaching and learning materials. Numerous workshops aim to link theory and practice during the course of study. A central focus is on testing opportunities for differentiation and individualization with the help of didactic materials. The Learning Workshop’s program of events is open to everyone. Announcements regarding current events can be found on the Media Network Center website or in the course catalog.