Effective communication is essential in science, but do you ever wonder whether articles written about science in the news are thorough, unambiguous and objective? This module lets you explore contemporary areas in science, examining the ‘science behind the news’. You’ll develop valuable skills, including searching current research, critiquing and evaluation methods, risk analysis, decision-making, and science communication. You’ll also explore different ways of collaborative working in a digital environment.
In everyday life, we often meet advances in science, usually through reports in the media. How science is reported is crucial as it can influence decisions and behaviour. For example, the suggested link between the MMR vaccine and autism in the late 1990s illustrates how stories can develop far beyond the original scientific report and consequently influence the behaviour of the public. Therefore, you will appreciate that effective communication is essential for scientists. You will begin this module by exploring how science is peer-reviewed and published before becoming news.
Next, you will study some recent original scientific research articles evaluating how closely they match some related news or other media articles. One contemporary topic we will use as an example is plastics in society. We will look at the many multidisciplinary problems in their production, use and disposal, and, where possible, some potential solutions. You will choose one of the multidisciplinary aspects (such as the health effects of the leaching of chemicals from plastics, novel uses and recycling of plastics, or plastics in the environment and geology) to apply your evaluation skills.
As part of your evaluation of the science behind the news, you will investigate the process of carrying out scientific research and how datasets are analysed and represented. This is an increasingly important area as more large datasets in science are being made available to the public. In this module, you will also be given the opportunity to work with some datasets, such as the level of lead in the blood of children due to environmental exposure.
For the later parts of the module, you will select one from several interdisciplinary scientific topics that you will individually investigate in more depth. Some examples of possible interdisciplinary scientific topics include antibiotic resistance, biodiversity, sensors and diagnostics, pollution from diesel vehicles, rare earth elements, moons and asteroids. Your chosen topic should suit your interests and previous studies to allow you to apply your prior scientific knowledge to a contemporary real-world issue. In parallel, you will also be encouraged to assess the broader implications in society of the science that you are exploring.
There is a popular online ‘science conference’ where you will utilise the skills learnt during the module to produce a scientific poster on your chosen topic. In addition, you will also adopt the role of a scientific advisor, presenting the findings from your chosen investigation as a separate briefing document. You will be fully supported in developing the vital employability skills you will practice and improve during these activities, such as presentation, critical thinking and analysis, awareness of societal impact, assessing risk, and decision making. The study materials work through some recent scientific topics and guide planning your literature search, analysing data and communicating the information.
The module is ideal preparation for anyone planning a career in science, particularly those intending to go on to study one of the Science project course modules. As part of your first assessment, you will develop skills to deal with information unfamiliar to you and present your findings in a particular written style. Two intermediate submissions will help you to further develop crucial independent learning such as data analysis and presentation skills, and preparing a scientific poster with an accompanying recorded audio pitch, data analysis and presentation skills. For the final assessment, you'll present your findings as a short briefing document for a specific audience.
You are expected to check the S350 website and online forums frequently and participate in group discussions in online tutorials. You will also be introduced to working with Open Studio, an online platform, to participate in a student conference involving peer support and feedback. Note that the module is delivered entirely online, with no printed materials.
There are no formal entry requirements for this module.
At The Open University, we believe education should be open to all, so we provide high-quality university education to anyone who wishes to realise their ambitions and fulfil their potential.
Even though there are no entry requirements, you’ll need some knowledge and skills obtained through:
Are you ready for S350?
You’ll get help and support from an assigned tutor throughout your module.
They’ll help by:
Online tutorials run throughout the module. While they’re not compulsory, we strongly encourage you to participate. Where possible, we’ll make recordings available.
Course work includes:
You’ll have access to a module website, which includes:
Additionally, the website includes:
The OU strives to make all aspects of study accessible to everyone, and this Accessibility Statement outlines what studying S350 involves. You should use this information to inform your study preparations and any discussions with us about how we can meet your needs.
To find out more about what kind of support and adjustments might be available, contact us or visit our Disability support website.
Evaluating contemporary science (S350) starts once a year – in October.
It will next start in October 2026.
We expect it to start for the last time in October 2031.
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