How your voice has made a difference
This page provides an opportunity to see the valuable feedback received from students across a wide range of communication channels, and to see what the OU has done in response.
Please note this video is now a couple of years old so some people no longer have the same title. The current Students Association leadership can be seen on their website.
Choose a topic from the drop-down list below to see how students can have an impact on their university experience and be empowered to help shape the University. Next time you are asked to give your opinion, you know that the OU is taking this feedback seriously and will respond.
You said...
Face-to-face tutorials were strongly preferred to online (with the request for more face-to-face tutorials at level 3). For face-to-face tutorials it would be useful to have a mixture of longer and shorter tutorials, with online tutorials being recorded. Tutorials with interaction were better than lectures. The value of face-to-face tutorials, particularly at level 3, was also noted in the NSS comments.
We did...
Our aim is to preserve face-to-face tutorial provision and try to provide a mixture of short and longer tutorials as appropriate and each module team reviews the tutorial provision each year. In addition the majority of modules. both undergraduate and postgraduate, have screencasts which supplement the module material and synchronous tutorial provision. The mathematics and statistics AL staff development group organised a series of Adobe Connect training for mathematics and statistics ALs to develop skills in delivering interactive online tutorials through the new software.
Mathematics and Statistics
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You said...
MU123/intensive start MU123 was praised in terms of the written material, video clips, quizzes and study planner, and tutors and registration staff. Whilst some students felt that MU123 might set students up to fail given the steep learning curve following the completion of this module, this was countered by a number others who had started with MU123 which had been at the right level for them and who were now doing well at level 2. Some students objected to being made to study level 1 modules when they felt they could have started at a higher level and suggested that students should be allowed to study modules at a higher level, or be given a reduced fee for level 1 modules.
We did...
We aim to strengthen advice to students regarding the starting point at level 1, both in terms of starting with MU123 and the intensive start. Currently there is no move to relax the regulation for 120 credits at each level, however the Board of Studies has been given permission to grant exceptional permission for students who are unhappy with the free choice slot and want to count down a level 2 or 3 module.
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You said...
...what a potential new Master of Physics (MPhys) qualification should look like, and how this should be developed from the existing Stage 3 curriculum.
We did...
Your views and suggestions helped guide the discussions within the School of Physical Sciences and influenced the draft plans for an MPhys which will be considered further by the School and the Faculty.
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You said...
Programming skills are important for a physics-flavoured undergraduate degree and should relate to programming in the Space Science and Technology MSc. They should be taught throughout the degree, be project-based and/or embedded in activities in modules, relate to problem-solving and impart transferable skills. The use of programming and computing should be authentic and not included for its own sake.
We did...
We agree that programming skills need to be developed throughout our BSc qualifications. We have already made the first step towards this goal: the new Stage 1 module SM123 “Physics and Space” contains some basic elements of coding in the context of physics examples, using Python as the language of choice. We hope to be able to develop this further at Stages 2 and 3, possibly as part of a project. While it is true that we wish to develop generic coding skills, not the peculiarities of a particular language, one language still has to be chosen, and given its popularity, for now this will be Python. This approach is also consistent with what we heard from employers on the SEPnet (South East Physics Network) employer engagement panel.
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You said...
Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) material and resources of online-only modules such as Questions in science (S111) should be made available from the start of the module.
We did...
The full suite of resources of Questions in science (S111), Physics: from classical to quantum (S217) and Practical science: physics and astronomy (SXPA288) will be made available when their respective VLE sites open.
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You said...
You struggled with the online delivery of Physics: from classical to quantum (S217).
We did...
We have improved the print-quality PDF files by imbedding QR codes so that a student who chooses to work from printed pages can benefit from faster access to the multimedia resources (notably videos, simulations, and interactive elements).
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You said...
You found the Practical science: physics and astronomy (SXPA288) Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) site difficult to navigate and some resources are difficult to locate.
We did...
We have improved the organisation of the Practical science: physics and astronomy (SXPA288) VLE. We have also updated a number of the initial activities and videos to make them more visually engaging and relevant. The project booking system has been simplified and group work has been improved with the use of Adobe Connect for team collaboration.
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You said...
The amount of material covered in TMAs of The quantum world (SM358) is too uneven.
We did...
We have revised TMA1 of The quantum world (SM358) to obtain a more balanced workload.
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You said...
…which skills you think are necessary for OU study.
We did...
We used this information to develop a skills development strategy to thread through BA (Honours) Health and Social Care (R26). This addresses both skills for study and for employment.
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You said...
You wanted a sharper focus on employability in BA (Honours) Health and Social Care (R26).
We did...
We have worked with the Careers and Employability Services to strengthen the focus on employability.
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