{"id":1822,"date":"2022-07-22T10:45:07","date_gmt":"2022-07-22T10:45:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/classicalstudies\/?p=1822"},"modified":"2022-07-22T10:45:07","modified_gmt":"2022-07-22T10:45:07","slug":"q-a-with-dr-gina-may","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/classicalstudies\/?p=1822","title":{"rendered":"Q & A with Dr Gina May"},"content":{"rendered":"

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This week we chatted with\u00a0OU Classicist Gina May\u00a0about her new book A Student\u2019s Guide to Online Learning<\/em>\u00a0published by the Open University Press, which is due to go on sale on 12 August.<\/p>\n

Hello Gina! Before we start talking about your book, could you introduce yourself to our readers? How did you get into Classics?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

I have been an associate lecturer with the Open University since 2009 and have taught modules at stages 1, 2 and 3 as well as at postgraduate level.\u00a0 Over the years I have also contributed to module content and TMA questions for a variety of Classical Studies modules \u2013 it is my dream job!\u00a0 At the same time as teaching for the OU, I also taught in the Classical Studies department at the University of Kent for 10 years but left there 3 years ago to allow time to write and develop my own courses which I teach online as an independent educator.\u00a0 I also do work as a consultant for universities and schools developing online teaching strategies and training staff to teach online.<\/p>\n

I first discovered a love of Classics at school because our drama teacher had us reading Greek tragedies and our French teacher had us reading Racine\u2019s versions of the same Greek tragedies, but in French.\u00a0 I also did Latin at school which I loved but did not do any other ancient languages until I went to university as a mature student.\u00a0 Although I had a long gap before starting a degree, I kept reading in the meantime and when my children were in their teens, I did a BA and PhD degree in Classical Studies and loved every single minute!\u00a0 I am a lifelong learner and look enviously at OU modules wishing I could do them all.<\/p>\n

What is your daily routine like, in your job as an OU associate lecturer in the Faculty of Arts & Social Sciences?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

As associate lecturers we work from home and so I spend most of my days in a summer house at the end of my garden which is great!\u00a0 I teach on 5 modules including A863 and A864 which are the first and second years of the Classical Studies MA.\u00a0 My work includes writing and delivering tutorials, marking TMAs, talking to students via email and on the phone, as well as other general tasks such as monitoring and moderating forums.\u00a0 There is a great feel of camaraderie between the members of the department and although ALs do not go onto the physical campus very often, we still feel very much a part of what goes on and have a great rapport with the central academics.<\/p>\n

We are all excited about reading your new book <\/strong><\/em>A Student\u2019s Guide to Online Learning<\/strong>!\u00a0 How did you come to write the book?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

The book came about because during the pandemic there was such a large shift towards online teaching for both universities and schools.\u00a0 This made me realise that actually, the OU have been doing this really well for years so were well ahead of the game in terms of teaching.\u00a0 However, there was nothing on the market that looked closely at the skills needed for learning<\/em> online.\u00a0 I started by talking to current and former students asking them what they wished they had known before they started and to tell me about some of the problems they encountered or were encountering along the way.\u00a0 This, combined with the experience of teaching thousands of students both face to face and online, helped to decide on the content.<\/p>\n

Who did you write it for? Is your target readership mainly OU students? Who else do you think will benefit from reading the book?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

As an AL I had my own students at undergraduate and postgraduate levels in mind a lot of the time, but the content works equally well for any student of an online course whether that is as part of a degree or for work as part of continuing professional development.\u00a0 A lot of the issues are the same such as developing the right persona, conversing with tutors and peers and demonstrating employability skills.\u00a0\u00a0 The use of social media as a tool for learning and networking is something that is new to many students so this is also covered.<\/p>\n

Could you give us a sneak preview of the contents? How is the book structured (and was it difficult to decide how to structure it?)<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

The chapter headings are: Online Identity and Personas; Learning Online Environments; Accessing Learning and Peer Support; Recognising Strengths and Overcoming Difficulties and Disabilities; Academic Integrity and Employability; Researching Online; Digital Technologies for Online Learning; Using Social Media for Learning Online and Trouble Shooting, Staying Safe Online.<\/p>\n

To decide on the structure, I thought about the order in which a student might need to know how to do things and went from there.\u00a0 The book can be used by starting from the beginning and working through to the end but works equally well for just dipping in and out of.\u00a0 Each chapter has advice and practical exercises together with quotes from students who have experience of dealing with the particular issue being talked about.<\/p>\n

Which chapter was hardest to write, and why?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

The hardest chapter to write was ‘Trouble Shooting’.\u00a0 Current and former students sent me lots of examples of things that had happened to them and how they had resolved the issues.\u00a0 I then had to combine these together with my own experience as a tutor and online student into a format that worked well.\u00a0 I wanted to provide clear advice that would be both helpful and reassuring.<\/p>\n

Which is your favourite chapter, and why?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

I have two favourite chapters.\u00a0 The first is \u2018Recognising Strengths and Overcoming Difficulties and Disabilities\u2019.\u00a0 This is because students tend to focus on the negative, the things that they have done \u2018wrong\u2019, cannot do because of a difficulty or disability, or do not know how to do.\u00a0 I wanted to turn this completely on its head and look at how to discover what you can<\/em> do well, how this is being done and how to enhance it going forward.\u00a0 The chapter also deals with practical issues such as how to use assistive technologies such as screen readers and voice activated software.\u00a0 For me, the important thing about this chapter is that it empowers all<\/em> students.<\/p>\n

My other favourite is \u2018Researching Online\u2019 simply because I love research.\u00a0 In this chapter I show how to narrow and deepen a search to avoid falling down rabbit holes that might well provide hours of pleasant reading but that may not actually be very useful.\u00a0 I look at using library catalogues and other data bases as well as what does not<\/em> form academic content and so should be avoided.<\/p>\n

The book is written together with Tim Bentley – could you tell us a bit about this collaborative writing process?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

My co-author (and husband) is now a paramedic and paramedic educator but is a former learning technologist who developed and implemented online learning platforms at two large UK universities. \u00a0\u00a0Using this expertise, he contributed towards the explanation of how technologies work and can be best used in order to learn online, and what to do when things go wrong.\u00a0 Content includes everything from making sure that your internet connection is secure to how to use the tools in FB and Twitter to enhance learning and to become part of the wider learning community in your discipline.<\/p>\n

What is your next project after this book?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

I am currently working on a number of projects.<\/p>\n

The first is a companion book to A Student\u2019s Guide to Online Learning<\/em> which is aimed at those who teach<\/em> online.\u00a0 It looks at the practical skills of online and blended teaching as well as how to write or convert material to do so.\u00a0 This combines my experience of many years teaching online with the wealth of experience that current and former students, and colleagues, continue to share with me.<\/p>\n

My other current projects include:<\/p>\n