Archives for Study
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STEAM Adding Arts to STEM?
I've recently started to see references to STEAM, which is STEM with an added A. Nothing to do with old fashioned trains or kettles, although the former could be part of ; Most people are probably familiar with the term STEM as an acronym formed from Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics. There has been lots of promotion in the last five years or so to promote STEM to kids, especially girls, so that we have enough technically minded people to run our economy in the ; STEAM STEAM is based on a fundamental premise that the Arts are as important to our way of life as the STEM subjects. However the point of STEAM isn't a reactionary attempt to recover balance. It's more that effective innovation embraces the power of story and culture as much as engineering and technology. People…
B204 Feedback – A Student Perspective of B204 Leadership, Influencing & Change
I've recently finished studying for B204 Leadership, Influencing and Change, I thought I'd share my B204 feedback. It's not a module I can recommend, for a variety of reasons. Some of these are to do with the specific tutor I had (who I didn't find effective) and some are around the course-work and assessment. I'm posting this before I know what my final mark is, just to avoid the 'sour grapes' aspect of failing it (which I doubt, I scored in the low 60s for my continuous assessment). In the spirit of constructive feedback I copied down my responses to the OU's end of course student questionnaire to get B204 feedback. I doubt any of these comments will feature in their prospectus, so I thought I'd post them on my blog for future prospective students of B204 to find. Feel…
T317 Survey – Innovation in Government Services
I need to conduct some primary research as part of the final innovation project for T317 (Innovation: Designing for Change), so here is my T317 Survey. The purpose of my T317 Survey is to ask a few questions about the sort of government services people use and whether or not they would find it desirable to be able to have their birth or marriage details checked online. T317 Project Historical marriage certificate, not digital! (Photo credit: Wikipedia) My project for T317 is an online verification service for birth and marriage details. It would take the place of having to send in a birth certificate or marriage certificate when you apply for a passport, child benefit or some other government service that needs to verify your name or date of birth. It wouldn't work for everyone, just those born/married in the…
Decoding Assignment Questions – Three Steps to Success
If you want to get a good grade in your open university tutor marked assignment (TMA) then you must answer the assignment questions. I've written about the other steps to getting awesome assignment marks before. However a few more tutorials, and some painful personal experience, has shown that I need to revisit answering the assignment questions. Three Steps to Decoding Assignment Questions Read the assignment questions closely Identify the thinking or cognitive skills Pick out appropriate theories from the assignment questions 1. Reading the Assignment Questions Closely The people that write our assignment questions are very careful in their use of language. They pick the words to give us clues, and they use them precisely. So spend some time reading the question and make no assumptions about what you are being asked to do. Break the assignment questions into each…
Inquiry as a Tool for Leaders (B204)
Inquiry should form the basis for leadership decision-making and action, because without productive inquiry you cannot be certain what needs to be done. Here's a bit I wrote for an assignment while studying B204 Leadership, Influencing and Change with the Open University. What is Inquiry? Dewey defines it as “determination of an indeterminate situation” in his book Logic: the Theory of Inquiry (1938). He sees patterns of inquiry as a sequential process which iterates following experimentation. Dewey links this to the scientific method, there is a need to gather information, and to make conscious practical tests of theory developed through reflection. Cook & Seely Brown (1999) expanded on Dewey’s theory by bringing in organisational theory, distinguishing between knowledge and knowing, and interaction with the real world. In blending these ideas Cook & Seely Brown show that there is more to learning than simply…