You Said, We Did
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.
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...
You are dissatisfied with the lack of printed material, chiefly textbooks, in modules that are fully or predominantly presented online.
We did...
We acknowledge the practical value of printed books for a significant fraction of our learners, while embracing the enormous opportunities digital and online material affords for pedagogy, ease of use, topicality and flexibility. Going forward we are investigating how to bring you the best of both worlds, where some good-quality printed material is deployed in support of electronic resources. The balance between these media may be different for different modules, and whilst it is unlikely that the learning resources will become available in full in both formats we pledge that we are not abandoning books for good.
Physical Sciences
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You said...
There is lack of practical experience via laboratory schools in the curriculum.
We did...
We have added to and improved our OpenScience Laboratory assets, and we are confident that these will become a new benchmark for teaching practical skills at a distance. We are also taking part in a trial opening up the OpenPlus lab schools (at level 1) to Stage 1 students, to assess feasibility for rolling this out more widely.
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You said...
Some regret was expressed about the move away from face to face tutorials.
We did...
Unfortunately, the attendance of face to face tutorials overall has been low. As it is difficult to justify using significant resources for activities that benefit only a minority of our students we believe that recorded online tutorials are a more useful substitute. We continue to review the provision of tuition across our modules and will investigate the feasibility of selected face to face events such as introductory or revision days schools.
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You said...
We find the online environment overwhelming at first.
We did...
We introduced a hard-copy Quick Start Guide for students on DD102 and a hard-copy Preparing for Study booklet on DD103.
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You said...
We find it hard to find and work with assessment guidance online.
We did...
We introduced hard copy assignment booklets on our core level 1 modules, DD102 and DD103
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You said...
We need help with OU Live, module websites, submitting TMAs and using forums.
We did...
We introduced a range of ‘How to…’ videos on navigating module websites, using OU Live, submitting TMAs and using forums.
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You said...
Moving from Year 1 to Year 2 is daunting
We did...
We introduced a range of resources (videos, audios and FAQs) to help to prepare you to move from your first year of study to your second year.
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You said...
You found the timing of final assignments on some modules difficult.
We did...
We revised schedules to provide more space between final assignments.
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You said...
You wanted more variety in the way your learning is assessed.
We did...
Our new modules now include a range of different forms of assessment including report styles for different audiences, essays and poster presentations.
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You said...
You wanted more printed materials when you start studying.
We did...
We have reintroduced a printed Assignment Booklet at Level 1 to help you get used to what is required in OU assessments.
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