-
From insight to impact: The evolving role of learning design in higher education
~~ By Alice Gallagher, Interim Head of Learning Design Introduction When I stepped into the role of Interim Head of Learning Design earlier this year, I found myself looking at a familiar discipline through a new lens. Having spent much of my career in learning design before moving into curriculum and service leadership roles, returning…
-
Looking through the lens of compassionate pedagogy: attending the Open University WELS EDI Festival
Hayley Kelly, Cinzia Imbriano-Merner, Anna Judd-Yelland, Catriona Matthews, and Mark Williams ~ Learning Designers The WELS Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) Festival 2026 ran from 20 April –1 May online for Open University staff and student reps. It was organised to celebrate the diverse journeys of OU students and staff in the Faculty of…
-
Ed Tech talk up North: reflections on ALTC24
Kathleen Calder and Shawndra Hayes-Budgen ~ Learning Designers This year’s Association for Learning Technologies conference (aka ALTC24) was held over three days in September in Manchester, England. We were invited to share experiences of using Miro to support remote teamworking and to launch the new ALT Digital Sustainability SIG. We’d delivered presentations for ALTC…
-
Inclusive module design: considering the needs of dyslexic students
Courtney Ince ~ Learning Designer I recently had the pleasure of working with a module team that were designing a Level 2 undergraduate art history module called Art and Life before 1800. It’s a particularly complex and ambitious thematic module that forms a pivotal stage in a new named degree pathway. It aims to incorporate…
-
Beyond the “real world”: exploring authentic assessment design
Mary Simper ~ Learning Designer The Learning Design team at the OU has been exploring assessment practices, which has led to some rich discussions on accessibility, student choice, learning outcomes and authenticity. Discussions around authentic assessment have led us to think about how we can design assessments, well… more authentically! Let’s start with an analogy……
-
Will wonders ever SiSE?: Designing for Students in Secure Environments
by Hayley Johns During my work with the Open University so far, I’ve been really privileged to work with students from all walks of life. One key part of the OU student community, and a new one for my own practice, is students in secure environments. The OU’s work reaches over 200 prisons and secure…