Students are at the heart of learning design. Part of the role of the learning design team is to explore students’ needs through data and research. We then work with module authors and other colleagues to to advise
on how these needs can be met.

1. Curriculum design student panel
   Our student panel now has nearly 3,000 members. They provide feedback on activities, tools and learning materials so that our course teams can design for students’ real experiences.
2. Building student profiles
   We provide data and research to help module teams design student profiles that capture students’ goals and challenges. They can refer to these throughout module development to ensure they’re addressing students’ needs.
3. Student experience workshops
   We work with module teams to help them reflect on students’ perspectives and what support and resources students might need to succeed.
4. Real-time student feedback
   We advise module teams on how to gather student feedback while courses are live. They can then respond to students’ comments immediately and in future courses.
5. Student-focused scholarship
   We carry out research into students’ needs and perspectives so that we can share these (often via our blog) with module teams and learning design teams outside The Open University.