No student needs to face the journey alone. Here you’ll find helpful articles and tools to support your studies - tips from those who've been there and done it, discussions about revising for exams, how to find support if you have a disability, summer study survival tips plus links to all the other OU portals offering tools to support you in being an OU student.
DSE141 DD131 February start.
Hi everybody.... anybody starting DSE141 DD131 feb start in Bimingham or surrounding areas interested in starting an online study group when times comes?
anybody on facebook please add Kimberly Moody.
Hi everybody.... anybody starting DSE141 DD131 feb start in Bimingham or surrounding areas interested in starting an online study group when times comes? anybody on facebook please add Kimberly Moody.
Video: OU graduates share their top study tips...
OU graduates share their top study tips...
OU graduates share their top study tips... 2.666665 Average: 2.7 (6 votes)
Y176 understanding children and young people November start
Hi Everyone,
My name's Natalie, I'm just starting the Y176 understanding children and young people course.
anyone else out there on this course this November.
would be great to get to know a few people.
I'm 30 years old and a post lady from Tunbridge wells in Kent. i'm hoping to re train eventually as a social worker or something similar helping children and famillies.
I don't yet have any children of my own but would like a family soon.
I think this course will be really interesting for me.
Natalie
Hi Everyone, My name's Natalie, I'm just starting the Y176 understanding children and young people course. anyone else out there on this course this November. would be great to get to know a few people. I'm 30 years old and a post lady from Tunbridge wells in Kent. i'm hoping to re train eventually as a social worker or something similar helping children and famillies. I don't yet have any ...
OU Library provides services to America in wake of Hurricane Sandy
Did you know that the OU Library offers a round the clock help service, seven days a week, thanks to a trans-Atlantic co-operative with libraries across America, called the 24/7 Reference: Academic Cooperative?
“What this means,” says Fiona Bowtell, OU Library Helpdesk Manager, “Is that, working with libraries across America, we can provide a 24/7 library helpdesk service to our students and help libraries in America provide the same round the clock help to their library users.
“When we wake up, and American library staff go to sleep, queries to helpdesks in libraries in America are routed through to us and other libraries in the UK so we can help give people answers quickly. And when we finish for the day, queries to us are routed to library staff in America so our students can get help when they need it.”
And this relationship extended even further in anticipation of Hurricane Sandy this week and the following evacuation of parts mid-Atlantic US.
“All libraries that are part of the 24/7 Reference: Academic Cooperative were contacted as Hurricane Sandy approached,” added Fiona. “We were told that many libraries in mid-Atlantic US would be closed with staff unable to answer queries and asking other members to help with an increased volume of queries.”
“We were glad to help and it’s reassuring to know that, in similar circumstances, OU students wherever they are would be able to get support through such a valuable network,” says Fiona.
For more information about the OU Library and its round the clock help and support visit www.open.ac.uk/library
Pictured is Hurricane Sandy making its way to the East Coast. Photo by National Environmental Visualization Laboratory/Creative Commons
Hurricane Sandy has caused devastation across the United States but, thanks to services like the Open University Library, East Coast library users may have been less affected. Did you know that the OU Library offers a round the clock help service, seven days a week, thanks to a trans-Atlantic co-operative with libraries across America, called the 24/7 Reference: Academic ...
OU library helps make sense of the digital world
Being Digital is a collection of short, easy-to-follow activities on finding, using and creating information online that will help you become a confident and critical user of digital tools and resources for study, work and in everyday life.
You’ll find activities on:
- Making the most of online networks
- Managing your digital identity
- Using Wikipedia
- Evaluating and using online tools
- Searching effectively
Each chunk of learning should take no more than 10 minutes to complete, making it easy to fit Being Digital activities into your schedule. You can decide how you would like to use the site; you can select individual activities by browsing an A-Z list or follow a specific pathway to give you a deeper understanding of a topic.
To find out more about how Being Digital can help you develop essential skills for your studies, work or everyday life, visit the website.
Ever wondered about your digital footprint? Or wondered who or what you can trust online? OU Library Services recently launched a new website called Being Digital to help you do just that. Being Digital is a collection of short, easy-to-follow activities on finding, using and creating information online that will help you become a confident and critical user of digital tools ...
Help me complete this research please!!
Hello Everyone !!
This is a massive plea for help!
My name is Farheen Al-Mishari, currently pursuing a BSc in Natural Science here. My husband, Saud, is a graduate student here for MSc in Computer Forensics. His dissertation time had started and he has been busily amassing data for his research via a simple online questionnaire. Lately though, I've noticed him getting very dissappointed at the amount of surveys he has collected - only 115 so far and the deadline is soon approaching. We've done literally everything we can think of to promote our online survey (which deals with Internet Privacy on Social Networking websites like Facebook) but it is not picking up any speed. This is our sincerest, most desperate attempt at asking for some help with this, by simply taking the survey online. He is even donating money to Save Children as the counters move upward just for some good karma! Im just asking for some public kindness in helping him reach his goal. I cannot tell you how much we will appreciate this! Here's the link to copy and paste on your web browser:
The Save the children link to show you our progess so far:
http://www.justgiving.com/OUT802ResearchintoPrivacy
Thank you!
Farheen
Hello Everyone !! This is a massive plea for help! My name is Farheen Al-Mishari, currently pursuing a BSc in Natural Science here. My husband, Saud, is a graduate student here for MSc in Computer Forensics. His dissertation time had started and he has been busily amassing data for his research via a simple online questionnaire. Lately though, I've noticed him getting very dissappointed at the ...
OU widens access to academic papers
The OU has widened access to academic research material, making it much easier for academics, researchers and students to find and download academic papers.
Access has been vastly improved through the OU's Open Access search facility CORE, thanks to technical leaps in this innovative system created by the OU’s Knowledge Media Institute (KMi).
CORE - which stands for COnnecting REpositories - has seen unprecedented success in the past year and has more than tripled in size, now offering content from a global network of repositories, freely available to scholars worldwide.
CORE provides a large easy-to-search database to help academics, researchers and students to find, explore and download research papers. When the service was first launched in 2011 CORE could source material in 60 repositories –but today it aggregates data from over 230 internationally plus content from thousands of Open Access journals acquired through the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ). This means the service holds more than nine million metadata items and about half a million full text files.
'CORE is not only a search system, it is a free platform for developing applications that need access to the full-text of research articles. A very large amount of data is now available'
Funding from JISC is permitting the project to develop further analytical processes with DiggiCORE project, which will utilise social media tools.
Unlike other Open Access scholarly search systems, CORE also aggregates the full-text files, and not only metadata, and therefore ensures the publication full-texts are freely available for download. Users of commercial academic search systems, such as Google Scholar, can be denied access to the full article, particularly when subscription fees are required.
The reason for CORE’s success rise is clear, says software designer and founder Peter Knoth: “A huge amount of research papers have been available online as Open Access, but there was limited technical infrastructure that would support different kinds of users in exploiting it. CORE is not only a search system, it is a free platform for developing applications that need access to the full-text of research articles. A very large amount of data is now available through the CORE API. The CORE Linked Open Data repository has this month already grown to 100 million RDF triples making it by far the largest Linked Open Data repository at the Open University.
“CORE has created a resource which offers some intriguing possibilities. The API to the aggregation puts this valuable information into the hands of researchers and developers and offers them the chance to use it in new and better ways,” added Andy McGregor, the JISC manager of the Resource Discovery programme.
CORE is now available for flexible use online and on mobile devices and tablets and is already benefiting journals, scholars, at conferences and as technical support answering the demand for Open Access to academic research papers.
The OU has widened access to academic research material, making it much easier for academics, researchers and students to find and download academic papers. Access has been vastly improved through the OU's Open Access search facility CORE, thanks to technical leaps in this innovative system created by the OU’s Knowledge Media Institute (KMi). CORE - which stands for COnnecting ...
Trying to get my head around referencing...
I’ve been an OU student for nine years now and have witnessed an incredible change in the way the university works and the way studying is conducted. Over the years I’ve gradually improved my skills and although I’m certainly a long way off being a first class student I consider myself pretty adept at constructing arguments and writing a semi-decent essay.
However, there’s one aspect of being a student that no matter how hard I try I just simply cannot wrap my head around and frequently stumble on – referencing. I. Hate. Referencing. I really thought I’d cracked it last year, albeit via a cheat’s method. MS Word has a referencing tool so I got the hang of it and thought all my woes were solved, but feedback from a tutor set the record straight -it doesn’t actually present references in the strict Harvard style required by the OU.
Back to square one, and it’s now causing problems with my MA. Durham University uses Harvard style referencing too and MA study requires a lot more independent reading in terms of journal articles etc so I REALLY need to get the hang of it once and for all.
'It’s a truly comprehensive guide to citing references of ANY description – including Twitter, blogs, pieces of artwork – you name it!'
Now I’m obviously not the only one struggling with accurate referencing - and please do speak up if you’re in the same predicament as me – because on my StudentHome page I’ve spotted what could end up being my salvation. Check this baby out!
It’s a truly comprehensive guide to citing references of ANY description – including Twitter, blogs, pieces of artwork – you name it! It’s probably been there for donkey’s years but there’s just so much information available on the OU site it’s easy to miss things like this. This could be my saviour and help me once and for all get the hang of referencing.
All I need is exactly what it offers – an example of how to do an in-text citation and an example of a full reference, but when it’s not simple thing I’m referencing I get really confused. For my last essay I was trying to reference a website and got ridiculously muddled up with how to cite it properly – do I include the full URL or just the home page, do I put the date the webpage was created or the date I accessed it. There are too many variables for my feeble brain to cope with, especially when it’s just been frazzled with epistemological and ontological theory.
I have a TMA due in this week. It’s a level 3 crime module and I’ve been doing some additional reading for it so I’ll specifically ask my tutor if I managed to do my referencing right.
For any new students out there I would strongly urge you to have a gander at that page. My studying ‘career’ would have been far simpler if I had gotten to grips with referencing right from the start but alas, my intellect obviously doesn’t stretch that far.
The blogs page on Platform introduces me thusly - “self-confessed education addict Carrie Walton knows pretty much everything there is to know about being a student”. In the two years since I started writing this blog that has never failed to amuse me because whilst in a sense it’s true, in another sense it’s hilariously inaccurate. I’ve been an ...
Dropbox Space Race - free extra cloud storage space for students for two years
Dropbox is a useful free cloud storage service - perfect for storing copies of your notes and TMAs you're working on in case of accidental deletion or computer theft.
To read more, click here to read the notice on Platform. If that link doesn't work, click on the subject line of this message first!
Dropbox is a useful free cloud storage service - perfect for storing copies of your notes and TMAs you're working on in case of accidental deletion or computer theft. To read more, click here to read the notice on Platform. If that link doesn't work, click on the subject line of this message first!
Government launches new initiative for prospective students
The Government has launched a new information initiative to help prospective students in their decision-making about what and where to study.
From this Autumn, Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) in the UK are required to include Key Information Sets (KIS) – the new set of standardised statistics for undergraduate qualifications – on their online qualification pages.
KIS was launched by Business Secretary Vince Cable who said: “Applying to university is a big decision and we want to ensure that all students, whatever their background, have the key facts at their fingertips to help them make the right choice for them. The introduction of the Key Information Set represents a major step forward for students, their parents, and their school and college advisers.”
KIS draws on statistics from the National Student Survey (NSS), Destination of Leavers from Higher Education (DLHE) survey, and information directly from institutions, and covers areas including satisfaction with specific qualifications and support, accreditation of courses, and employment and salaries of students after graduation.
Key Information Sets across all HEIs and qualifications are held centrally on HEFCE’s Unistats website to enable prospective students to compare institutions – a selection of the statistics will be embedded on HEIs’ websites using a ‘widget’, which will draw data directly from, and link, to Unistats. The widget was released on 27 September and HEIs have until 31 October to add it to their online course pages, which the OU has already done.
You can see an example of how KIS appears on Study at the OU here, by scrolling down the page. KIS is for UK students and will be visible to those selecting a UK nation state in the drop down under ‘key facts’.
More information about KIS can be found on the HEFCE website.
The Government has launched a new information initiative to help prospective students in their decision-making about what and where to study. From this Autumn, Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) in the UK are required to include Key Information Sets (KIS) – the new set of standardised statistics for undergraduate qualifications – on their online qualification ...
DSE141 & DD131 - Facebook
Hello,
I have just started the above modules and I have decided to create a page on facebook for those who are studying psychology especially those who have taken the DSE141 and DD131 modules as facebook is a well known and easy to use tool. If anyone would like to join please follow the link below this post. The more people to join the greater amount of advice, help and support will be available for this subject on a wider scale. Anyone who has trouble please do not hesitate to message me. Thanks
http://www.facebook.com/TheOuPsychology
Nikki
Hello, I have just started the above modules and I have decided to create a page on facebook for those who are studying psychology especially those who have taken the DSE141 and DD131 modules as facebook is a well known and easy to use tool. If anyone would like to join please follow the link below this post. The more people to join the greater amount of advice, help and support will be ...
Group for study support - DSE141 & DD131
Hi
I have greated a group for those who want to join a study group for the modules DSE141 & DD131. I ma starting in October but anyone is welcome to join as individuals at all stages may be able to provide extra help and supports to both existing students and those of us who are new.
If you are interested please go to groups and join DSE141 & DD131
Nikki
Hi I have greated a group for those who want to join a study group for the modules DSE141 & DD131. I ma starting in October but anyone is welcome to join as individuals at all stages may be able to provide extra help and supports to both existing students and those of us who are new. If you are interested please go to groups and join DSE141 & DD131 Nikki
Advice please
I have not yet beeb allocated a tutor and my studies start oct 6th. Is anyone is this boat or has any advice.
Nikki
I have not yet beeb allocated a tutor and my studies start oct 6th. Is anyone is this boat or has any advice. Nikki
The OU is the highest rated university in National Student Survey 2012
The OU received an overall satisfaction rate of 93 per cent from students in the UK – a score it has consistently achieved for three years.
The Open University in Scotland and The Open University in Wales were both highest rated among universities for overall satisfaction and in both nations the overall satisfaction rating for the OU increased by 1 per cent on last year. In Northern Ireland the OU has been rated in the top two for student satisfaction in HE institutions since 2005 and appears behind a small HE institution, St Mary’s University College, Belfast.
The survey, produced by HEFCE, was completed by more than 23,000 OU students with 23 questions on how they rate teaching, learning and student resources.
Martin Bean, Vice Chancellor of the OU, said: “I’m absolutely delighted that our students have given us this accolade. Their responses show that The Open University’s combination of flexible study, world-class teaching and individually tailored support, backed by 6,500 associate lecturers, continues to provide students with the best possible experience of higher education."
For the first time, students were asked about their student union. OUSA achieved a satisfaction rating of 58 per cent, ranked 114 out of 154 in front of well-known campus-based Universities such as Oxford, Cambridge and Liverpool. OUSA is focused on improving this result year on year and are working closely with the University to raise awareness and meet the needs of OU Students. Visit OUSA’s website to read their response to the result.
In the video below, Wales' Minister for Education & Skills Leighton Andrews offers his congratulations...
Find out more:
* The OU is the highest ranking university for overall student satisfaction; St Mary’s University College, Belfast; Guildhall School of Music & Drama; and Courtauld Institute of Art do not hold university status.
The Open University outperformed all other universities to be highest rated in overall student satisfaction in the National Students Survey 2012 – a great start to the new academic year. The OU was the highest rated in this category out of all universities and appears behind three small specialist HE institutions in the rankings*. The OU received an overall satisfaction ...
iPad needed?
Hi
I'm currently in the process of registering for Beng and was looking at buying an iPad to help with my study. I have an iPhone but find the screen to small for reading documents. Has anyone used an iPad and if so was it worth the cost?
Hi I'm currently in the process of registering for Beng and was looking at buying an iPad to help with my study. I have an iPhone but find the screen to small for reading documents. Has anyone used an iPad and if so was it worth the cost?
One year on: Are student fees influencing your decision to go to uni?
On Student Finance Day 2011, and with student fees and loans high on the agenda for those considering university, Platform caught up with some prospective students via Twitter to find out how fees were influencing their decision-making. One year later, ahead of Student Finance Day 2012 (20 September), we caught up with them to see how they’re getting on now...
Age: 35
Location: Luton
Are you starting more study this Sept/October? If so have your course books arrived?
Yes. I am starting in October the S104 (Exploring Science) and S155 (Scientific Investigations). The material for the S104 arrived about a month ago and I have already started studying the first book.
How has flexible learning worked for you this year?
Flexible learning has worked great for me and I attribute it to the way the course material was planned and the tutors. The tutors have been instrumental in my experience. I was booked on to the MST121 (Using Mathematics), but after an evaluation the tutor suggested I took the MU123 (Discovering Mathematics) first to brush up my skills, and I was able to switch courses in time.
How did you find adapting to studying whilst also working part/full time?
It's been a very easy transition. I was worried that I would not have the discipline, but the way the course was laid out made it very easy to get into a routine of studying the units and working on assignments.
Have the changes in fees affected your studies at all?
I qualified for the transitional arrangement and continue with the pre-2012 fees, which for me has been a great help. The combination of financial support, OUSBA loans and transitional fees made it possible for me to continue with my studies.
Any other thoughts?
I have only praises for the way the courses are planned and the level of support and service I have received from The Open University. I have my studies planned and set out until 2016, and I feel very confident that I can achieve my goals based on my current experience with the OU.
Age: 28
Location: Welwyn Garden City
As yet I haven't signed up for a course, I have been a little too busy with work and I've had to pay for other unexpected expenses which has had to put back my plans too, as well as not being sure of where to start or what to do first. It's something I'm still thinking about , but as yet I haven't had the time or money to take it further.
On Student Finance Day 2011, and with student fees and loans high on the agenda for those considering university, Platform caught up with some prospective students via Twitter to find out how fees were influencing their decision-making. One year later, ahead of Student Finance Day 2012 (20 September), we caught up with them to see how they’re getting on now... ...
Career changer and new OU student Tracey can’t wait to get started
Tracey Bullock starts her OU studies in October 2012 and is financing them through a student loan. Currently working as a teaching assistant and single mum of two children, Tracey is working towards a Foundation Degree in Primary Teaching and Learning in order to become a teacher…
I officially start on 6th October and will be doing two modules, both level 1, each worth 60 credits. These will go towards my Foundation Degree in Primary Teaching and Learning. As I have my materials, I have made a start on reading and also on some of the activities. I’m really looking forward to the websites opening later this month so I can get properly stuck in!
Does the qualification fit with your current work and what do you hope to do with it afterwards?
As a teaching assistant, this qualification is perfect – it’s aimed at Teaching Assistants so will benefit myself, the school and the children I support. I may stop studying once I have completed this qualification but as I am enjoying studying I might transfer the credits over and do an extra year to get a full BA (Hons) degree. It is also possible that I will end up on a teacher training programme of some description in about five years which will be possible because of this course.
What made you choose the Open University?
They not only offered a course that was perfect for my current requirements but it also gives me lots of options later on. Most importantly, I can fit study around my lifestyle and with work, volunteering and two children to look after, that is very important.
How are you financing your study and how did you find the process of applying? Do you have any tips for other OU students?
I am financing my study through a student loan. The process of applying was really easy and I got a reply within a few weeks which confirmed I am eligible and how/when they will pay the OU. As I am funding my study through a student loan, the changes to fees has had no influence on me personally. This is the first time part-time study has been funded through the student loan, so I am very pleased with this change If a course gets you the qualification you want and you enjoy doing it, then I think it’s worth the money. If it leads to a new job or promotion of some kind, then it’s definitely worth the money! I would advise all students to look at the different options for funding and choose the one which best suits them.
How will you find time to manage your studies around work and raising children and are you looking forward to it?
It’s all about planning! I have time set aside for study which is when the children are at school or at their dad’s. They will go to their dad more of a weekend if I find I need time to get finished before my TMAs are due. Because of their ages (10 and 12 with birthdays just around the corner!) I can’t study when they are in bed as it would be too late for me. Also, the school I work at is very supportive and I will be able to get some extra time out of lessons on occasions if I need to get things finished. To say I am looking forward to it is an understatement – I am very excited and can’t wait to get started properly!
Do you think education is important for people who didn’t get to study at university first time round, and for those who want to change career?
Yes I do. For me, I wasn’t interested in study after school so it’s great that I can do it now. Now I am motivated and will not only do it but I’ll enjoy it too. I have found that the study I have done in the past two years (prior to OU) has led to my current job and this course will provide professional development with the chance of progression and I think that’s important. As I myself have had a major career change, I think it’s really important that people are aware that you can study, for any reason, at any age.
Do you have any advice for anyone thinking of taking up study with the OU? Would you recommend it?
I would definitely recommend study with the OU if you are organised and motivated. The ability to plan your study and work at your own pace is great if you can manage your time well. Anyone thinking of study with the OU should really think about what they want to study, why and what they want to achieve at the end of it. This will ensure they study appropriate modules and gain what they set out to gain. I spent months talking to the OU and other universities to ensure I was studying the right modules and that they would lead to the right qualification for me.
Useful links
- Study with the OU
- OU ways to pay
- OU Student Budget Account
- Part-time students' guide from Student Finance England
Tracey Bullock starts her OU studies in October 2012 and is financing them through a student loan. Currently working as a teaching assistant and single mum of two children, Tracey is working towards a Foundation Degree in Primary Teaching and Learning in order to become a teacher… When do you start studying and what qualification are you aiming for? I ...
National Student Finance Day 2012
Happy Student Finance Day 2012, a national day dedicated to explaining the changes to student finance in England.
The event is headed by consumer campaigner Martin Lewis of MoneySavingExpert.com and follows last year’s campaign which sees universities, schools and colleges in England working together to ensure prospective students, their parents, teachers and the media all understand the new student finance system in England – and to flag up that university study remains affordable.
“Part-time study could be a more attractive option for some still wavering about whether to go to university. Part-time degrees also give people more flexibility to allow them to study and hold down a job at the same time.”
Lucian Hudson, Director of Communications at the OU, said: "The way students will pay for their education in England has undergone massive change and we are getting behind Student Finance Day to clarify just what this means. The biggest change is that new part-time students will not have to pay fees upfront as, for the first time, many of them will be eligible for the Government’s student loans.
“In addition, The Open University still has its own unique OUSBA credit system in place which enables students to pay their fees in instalments, and on a module-by-module basis, throughout the course of their studies. And we continue to work hard to support those from disadvantaged backgrounds to access higher education; for students in England with a household income of less than £25k and who have not studied at university-level before, we have our Access to Success Route to help take their first steps at university.
“The OU specialises in being flexible and providing students with the same flexibility to pay the costs of their higher education. We recognise that in the new fees world providing students with as much choice and indeed clarity on that choice is key to helping them make crucial decisions about their future.”
While Student Finance Day focuses on the different funding options available to students in England, the OU has students right across the UK and internationally.
More information on the financial options available outside of England is available on our Ways to Pay page.
- Student blogger Carrie Walton on why study doesn’t have to be expensive
- Find out how new student Tracey is managing her finances
- Open University ways to pay
- Open University Student Budget Account
- Four easy steps to register for an OU qualification
- Financial support for study - Access to Success
- Student Finance 2012 website
- Part-time students’ guide
- Study with the OU
- Student Finance England’s, studying part-time
- Student Finance Day 2012 on Twitter – follow @sfdEngland2012 for updates or #studentfinanceday2012 or #OU_finance
- Try the part-time student finance calculator (below)
Happy Student Finance Day 2012, a national day dedicated to explaining the changes to student finance in England. The event is headed by consumer campaigner Martin Lewis of MoneySavingExpert.com and follows last year’s campaign which sees universities, schools and colleges in England working together to ensure prospective students, their parents, teachers and the media all understand ...
Confessions of a student: I did a really stupid thing last week...
I did a really stupid thing last week. It’s something I’ve done before but it’s not something I’m proud of and it’s not something I wanted to do again – I didn’t start my TMA until the day before it was due. When I say ‘start my TMA’ that includes the studying required for it. And when I say ‘TMA’ I should really pluralise it because there were two TMAs I did this for.
I’ll have to do a bit of planning too because the EMA for one of these modules is due while I’m on holiday and I really don’t want to be sat in a log cabin in Scotland doing OU stuff. I think Gordo would get a *tad* annoyed at that.
'So I might not be the world’s greatest student... but everything in my life revolves around my studies in some way, shape or form and I’m happy to be that way'
Anyway, changing the subject entirely *getting away from my failure as a student*, Sunday 16th September has seen me add another accolade to my repertoire – I’m now a half marathon runner. I made mincemeat of the Great North Run and despite doing only three runs in the past three months thanks to injury I ran the entire 13.1 miles start to finish without stopping/walking/collapsing/having any existential conversations with myself. I’m now the proud owner of a finisher’s medal and t-shirt which will be tucked away in a drawer for me to occasionally stumble across and smile at.
On the run I had found it easier to keep running than to consider stopping. Once you’re going and your legs have the momentum (although my momentum was only a millisecond faster than those walking) it’s quite easy to just keep that rhythm up. I knew that if I stopped, my legs would freak out and turn to jelly or stiffen up so it was easier and less troublesome to just keep going. I found exactly the same with studying – I had to take a couple of years off for various reasons and found it difficult to get back into the swing of it but once I was back on track I found it easy to keep going and now I just don’t want to stop. I daren’t stop. If I stop I might never get started again.
So I might not be the world’s greatest student and at times I ought to be shot for how lackadaisical I am but I’m a student none the less. Everything in my life revolves around my studies in some way, shape or form and I’m happy to be that way.
It’s less than three weeks until my graduation. Less than three weeks until I get the OU equivalent of my Great North Run finisher’s medal. Oh man, I’m looking forward to that day.
I did a really stupid thing last week. It’s something I’ve done before but it’s not something I’m proud of and it’s not something I wanted to do again – I didn’t start my TMA until the day before it was due. When I say ‘start my TMA’ that includes the studying required for it. And when I say ‘TMA’ I should really pluralise it ...
- Robyn Bateman's blog
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Study group for SK124
I'm starting SK124 in October and I was wondering if anyone else doing this course might want to start a study group? I thought it might be a good idea to have some help and it'll be a good way to make new friends! Anyone interested let me know :)
I'm starting SK124 in October and I was wondering if anyone else doing this course might want to start a study group? I thought it might be a good idea to have some help and it'll be a good way to make new friends! Anyone interested let me know :)
