You should have received the WBS3835 Information

Everyone

The materials have been sent out by Avni - if you have not received or have problems opening attachments - get in touch with Avni.

As Rosemary is coming on board with this module, some folks will have Rosemary as an AA - but we are still finalising these lists so until that time buy the 'Bell' book and read up on the next step in your BA Honours work. Rosemary, Peter and I should all be there for the first on-campus session on the 16th Feb. Materials from this session will go up digitally after the session, but attend if you can or get peer feedback a colleague who attends.

PLEASE it would be good to start early for this one. Time management is something we have talked about in passing, but for some of us 'time' is a big issue that needs to be tackled in order to get our work done. I am no different, and I procrastinate like the best of them with my PhD work! To add to that is are our perfectionist tendencies and past arts training that has stressed ONLY the best is good enough. So we wait to do things until we have to make a mad dash to the finishing line. A more measured approach is better, and somehow it needs to fit in with your own professional and personal schedule.

With this degree work, many people are doing things for the first time, so a realistic approach means doing the best possible job in the time given. This is not to say that the work cannot be top-notch, but to make it that way we need to develop strategies to create the environment for good/great/excellent practice. Talking to each other is a good way of developing skills and finding out how to get better at the study/work game - using the Blogs, emails, phone, Skype (I find appointments are best with Skype out of hours because they add the visual element to the discussion and the tutors do have home time) AND the campus session as face - to - face. I personally find these conversations interesting - but for you they are vital for networking and using your peers to help you do your job on the degree.

The content of work-based learning comes from your own workplace - you are the expert there, but the framework in which some of this work is developed can be challenging and needs a lot of effort and motivation to take up to a final year BA Honours level. Yes, I am talking about the academic writing style and the critical thinking that makes this style so effective. We are also introducing this style as an audio-visual for the learning diaries on the Blogs (you don't need to do audio-visual - you may want to work on your writing), the critical thinking is the same in either medium. Stella Cottrell's The Study Skills Handbook might be useful for these aspects of learning in Higher Education.

So - start early - and enjoy what you the progress that you have made. In the first session for WBS3835 we will also be connecting with the work you have just completed.

Comment are welcome.

Paula