Exploring practice
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Do you regularly find yourself asking questions of your work setting? Have you ever reflected on how effective aspects of your practice provision are? Exploring practice enables you to examine in detail a project theme pertinent to your practice. This unique opportunity promotes development of personal and professional learning in evidence-based practice and culminates in detailed action planning, exploring implications for change and improvements in practice. This course is readily accessible to busy practitioners through its online learning and teaching strategies which seek to facilitate and support your exploration of practice. It is open to an inter-professional audience, including youth justice workers, nurses and allied health professionals and social workers.
Fees 2012
See fees and funding options for study from September 2012.
Course facts
An undergraduate course in Health and Social Care.
| About this course: | |
|---|---|
| Course code | K316 |
| Credits | 60 |
| OU Level | 3 |
| SCQF level | 10 |
| FHEQ level | 6 |
| Course work includes: |
|---|
| 4 Tutor-marked assignments (TMAs) |
| End-of-module assessment |
| No residential school |
Register for the course
This course is available for study in the countries shown. Fees and financial support may vary by country.
What you will study
This course is about developing your ability to negotiate, plan and undertake a work-based project, and is designed to build on experience and develop practice. It will develop your confidence and competence as a practitioner, enabling you to assess evidence and draw appropriately on research findings. You will learn how to handle uncertainty and change and throughout the course you will relate learning to practice. The course is relevant to youth justice, social work, nursing and the allied health professions. To complete the course successfully you need recent relevant work experience – contact our Student Registration & Enquiry Service for further advice.
This course provides you with the skills needed to work independently and to interrogate critically the evidence of your practice in terms of knowledge and change creation. It provides you with the opportunity to demonstrate your learning within the workplace through an independent learning journey culminating in a written project of 7000 words.
You will develop the following key skills on this course:
- ability to learn in new and unfamiliar situations from differing sources and experiences
- appreciation of multiple perspectives and their effect on decision making
- ability to manage complexity and critically analyse, synthesise and evaluate new information in the context of its use
- ability to use information literacy, ICT tools and numeracy skills as appropriate to find, evaluate, process, present and communicate information
- ability to frame and address issues appropriate to your work, being aware of their context and environment
- independently plan, monitor, evaluate and improve your own learning and performance.
The course is delivered entirely online, its central learning resource is the website. You will use it to plan and conduct your studies via the interactive learning guide. This guide, coupled with the online calendar, will provide the ‘road maps’ for the progression of your project. You’ll be directed to online tools that are provided to support your project development, and collaboration with your peers will form an essential component of your learning journey.
Vocational relevance
This course will have relevance for your practice and practice setting. You will need to engage with your workplace line manager and develop a negotiated learning contract in relation to the area of practice you wish to investigate further. While this course does not provide you with a registered qualification, you will be able to use it towards your continuing professional development (CPD) and in some cases, it may meet your professional CPD requirements – please check with your professional body. This course also has relevance in your workplace and may form part of your professional development within your organisation.
Entry
This is a Level 3 course. Level 3 courses build on study skills and subject knowledge acquired from studies at Levels 1 and 2 and challenge you with advanced topics at undergraduate level. They are equivalent to the final year of an honours degree. These courses are also suitable if you already have a degree and want to update your knowledge.
Some study at Level 2 would put you in a strong position to enjoy this course and rise to its challenges. Its academic content has a direct bearing on practice, so you should have relevant experience to draw on to complete the course activities and assessment.
If you have any doubt about the suitability of the course, please contact our Student Registration & Enquiry Service.
Outside the UK
If you work in a health and social care setting outside the UK, this course may be suitable given that it is about the development of independent learning within a health and social care work setting. You will need to be in a practice setting and have a line manager to negotiate your work-based project. This course is delivered and assessed in English.
Preparatory work
You will receive guidance on how to get started online in your first course mailing. This will provide you with the information you need to get started on using your computer for OU study and working with the Computing Guide, which, for example, explains how to access and use your website and online discussion forums. If you have time before the course starts, you can work through this and explore all the online services available to you.
If you have a disability or additional requirement
Written transcripts of any audio components and Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF) versions of printed material are available. Some Adobe PDF components may not be available or fully accessible using a screen reader. Other alternative formats of the study materials may be available in the future. Our Services for disabled students website has the latest information about availability.
If you are a new student, or new to courses using a computer or the internet, you will need to inform us of your particular needs as soon as possible, as some of our support services may take several weeks to arrange. Details of how to do this and our range of support services are described in our publication Meeting Your Needs.
You can also find information about accessible study materials, financial support and the Disabled Students' Allowance, equipment and other services, on our Services for disabled students website. It also includes our contact details for advice and support both before you register and while you are studying.
Study materials
What's included
All the course teaching and library resources are available online through the website.
Computing requirements
This course includes online computer activities – you can access these using a web browser that can play Flash and Shockwave.
You will need internet access and a computer. If you have purchased a new computer since 2005 it should meet your course computing requirements. Check our Technical Requirements section if your computer is older than this or is otherwise unusual.
Teaching and assessment
Support from your tutor
You will be supported by an OU tutor who will be able to guide you through your learning on a one-to-one basis via email, telephone and online forum discussions. You will engage with your tutor group through online group discussions facilitated by your tutor. Your tutor will provide individualised support in preparation for and feedback on your assignments.
Contact our Student Registration & Enquiry Service if you want to know more about study with The Open University before you register.
Assessment
The assessment details for this course can be found in the facts box above.
You can choose whether to submit your tutor-marked assignments (TMAs) on paper or online through the eTMA system. You may want to use the eTMA system for some of your assignments but submit on paper for others. This is entirely your choice.
The TMAs are formative; your tutor will provide you with feedback relevant to the progression of your independent project. These assignments do not contribute towards your final assessment score but they are compulsory. The end-of-module assessment (EMA) is a 7000-word project report, which is submitted on paper.
Students also studied
Students who studied this course also studied at some time:
Future availability
The details given here are for the course that starts in February 2013. We expect it to be available once a year.
Fees 2012
See fees and funding options for study from September 2012.
Course facts
An undergraduate course in Health and Social Care.
| About this course: | |
|---|---|
| Course code | K316 |
| Credits | 60 |
| OU Level | 3 |
| SCQF level | 10 |
| FHEQ level | 6 |
| Course work includes: |
|---|
| 4 Tutor-marked assignments (TMAs) |
| End-of-module assessment |
| No residential school |
Study explained
- Financial support
- - find out if you qualify for support with your fees with our eligibility checker.
- Study explained
- - all you need to know about distance learning with the OU.
Your questions
We may have already answered it in our frequently asked questions.
Or contact an adviser in our Student Registration & Enquiry Service Email or call +44(0) 845 300 60 90+44(0) 845 366 60 35
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