The Open University

8 Days: To the Moon and Back – OU/ BBC co-pro told through the eyes of the astronauts

10 July 2019

The Apollo 11 mission – when humans first set foot on the Moon – stunned the world to become an unforgettable global phenomenon. 8 Days: To the Moon and Back, co-produced by the BBC and The Open University’s Broadcast and Partnership Team airs on Wednesday 10th July at 9pm on BBC Two and follows the […]

The Open University and Sport England unveil free sport coaching course

8 July 2019

The Open University and Sport England have partnered to deliver a free online course to educate and develop sports coaches, officials, instructors and activity leaders. Available on the OU’s free learning platform, OpenLearn – ‘Coaching Others to Coach’ launches on 8 July and can be studied by anyone at any time. Developed in consultation from […]

Cori Gauff in action on the tennis court

Cori Gauff: the support network behind 15-year-old who beat Venus Williams

5 July 2019

Candice Lingam-Willgoss, The Open University, writing for The Conversation. Until recently, it seems likely that only dedicated tennis fans had heard of Cori Gauff: the second youngest winner of the Junior French Open in 2018, she was one to watch – but it’s unlikely anyone predicted just how fast her star would rise. Yet the […]

OU first for Assessment and Feedback – National Student Survey results

4 July 2019

The results of the annual National Student Survey (NSS) have been published with The Open University ranked first for Assessment and Feedback with a score of 85%. Overall satisfaction has stayed at its strong score of 87%, keeping the OU in the top 20 of all UK universities, with a ranking of 17th amongst 139 […]

Never too old to learn: what will you do at 91?

3 July 2019

An inspirational 91-year-old woman from Bromley, London has been named as a finalist in the Festival of Learning Awards 2019. Sylvia Rowbottom was forced to leave school during the Second World War, aged 16, but made a pledge to herself to return to education when we got the chance, no matter how long it took. […]

Libra, Iran and the potential end of cryptocurrencies as we know them

3 July 2019

Robert Herian, The Open University, writing for The Conversation Facebook’s new cryptocurrency, libra, is being heralded as the moment that cryptocurrencies and blockchain, the technology that supports them, become truly mainstream. A notable rise in the price of bitcoin and many other cryptocurrencies in the run up to the libra announcement on June 18, and […]

How yoga conquered Britain: the feminist legacy of Yogini Sunita and Kalaish Puri

20 June 2019

Suzanne Newcombe, The Open University writing for The Conversation. From fairly obscure beginnings in the mid-20th century, the practice of yoga in Britain has become a massively popular pastime. It’s hard to find official figures for just how many people practise yoga regularly, but it’s thought that between 300,000 and 500,000 people regularly take part […]

Meet the OU’s International Students

20 June 2019

The Open University is launching the International Open Diaries; five short films featuring incredible OU students and alumni from different corners of the world. Following on from the UK Open Diaries that were launched in summer 2018, these new diaries have a distinctly international flavour. They offer a unique insight into what it’s like for […]

Meat is masculine: how food advertising perpetuates harmful gender stereotypes

19 June 2019

Kate Stewart, Nottingham Trent University and Matthew Cole, The Open University The UK Advertising Standards Authority has introduced a new rule in its advertising code which bans adverts which feature gender stereotypes “that are likely to cause harm, or serious or widespread offence”. This is a welcome step towards challenging the everyday normality of patriarchy […]

Enceladus, NASA/JPL/Space Science Institute

OU receives £6.7 million to expand Astrobiology research

13 June 2019

The Open University (OU) has received £6.7 million to expand its Astrobiology Research Group to address fundamental questions about life beyond the Earth. The grant is awarded under Research England’s “Expanding Excellence in England (E3) 2019-2022”. The funding was announced today by Universities and Science Minister Chris Skidmore, as part of 13 government backed projects […]

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