The first OU Women's Studies module : U221: 'The Changing Experience of Women' was presented in 1983 the final module U207 'Issues in Gender Studies', had its final year of presentation in 1999. During this period nearly eight and a half thousand students studied these modules. The OU has always had a strong influence on the lives of its students and these two modules were influential for both women and men; in some cases leading to major changes in life choices.
Myself ( Gill Kirkup) and Liz Whitelegg both worked on these modules from their inception. We believe that it is an opportune time to capture and evaluate the impact of these modules. We have created this space in the hope that there are still people active in 'Platform' who studied or taught these modules who would like reflect on the impact of these modules on their lives.