Darwin and evolution
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| End-of-course assessment | No residential school |
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This course is available for study in the countries shown. Fees may vary by country.
Summary
Darwin and evolution is one of a series of short, flexible 10-point courses introducing fascinating topics in science. This course is for you if you wish to find out more about the now well-established scientific basis for the Darwinian theory of evolution and its implications for us today. It also enables you to try out an area of study before you commit yourself to a longer course, or top up your knowledge and skills between longer courses. It has a choice of start dates, and you decide how long to take over your studies: eight to ten weeks, or up to five months.
Course content
Charles Darwin’s famous book On the Origin of Species… was published in 1859. In it, he set out his arguments and evidence for the theory of evolution by means of natural selection, sparking the most profound revolution in the history of science concerning our understanding of life, and of our own origins and nature.
The theory has been resoundingly vindicated by research in many branches of science in the following 150 years, replacing the more or less supernatural speculations of Darwin’s predecessors. The year 2009 also marks the bicentenary of his birth and in celebration of these important anniversaries this course explains and explores the science of evolution for those with little or no scientific background.
A richly illustrated book, 99% Ape: How Evolution Adds Up forms the core of the course, explaining modern evolutionary theory and its relevance to current issues, as well as illustrating a number of fascinating evolutionary case histories, including the origins of our own species and of the ways our minds work. The book is accompanied by a series of three television programmes on DVD that illustrate Darwin’s working methods, and a practical exercise where you’ll investigate variation and evolution in snails over a period of several days. An online study guide and online activities integrate these three components.
Entry
The course does not assume any previous scientific background and teaches the ideas and skills needed as and when they are required. It’s designed for people who are new to the subject areas, and although a little basic knowledge of general science would be useful, all you need is an interest in evolution and an interest in the now well-established basis for the Darwinian theory of evolution. You’ll have to understand some basic science, such as biology, chemistry and geology in order to do this. If you have read popular books on the subject, you will find the course develops your understanding and introduces topics that you have not met before. Mathematically you need only to be able to add, subtract, multiply and divide simple numbers. The structured teaching takes you to a level at which you are happy to use basic maths as a tool in a range of scientific contexts. To cope with the printed material, you should be able to understand in outline the sort of articles printed in ‘quality’ newspapers, and you should be able to write your thoughts down comprehensibly.
If you have any doubt about the suitability of the course, please contact our Student Registration & Enquiry Service.
Qualifications
S170 is an optional course in our:
- BSc (Honours) Life Sciences (B28)
- BSc (Honours) Geosciences (B25)
- BSc (Honours) Natural Sciences (B16)
- Certificate in Contemporary Science (C70)
It can also count as 10 points towards an Open University bachelors degree. We advise you to refer to the relevant qualification descriptions for information on the circumstances in which this course can count towards these qualifications because from time to time the structure and requirements may change.
If you have a disability or additional requirement
A large proportion of the course is delivered online via the course website, so you will have to spend considerable amounts of time using a personal computer and the internet. If you have severely impaired sight you may not be able to achieve some of the course learning outcomes, as the course relies heavily on coloured images and visual identification. A proportion of the course is based on educational software, delivered on the internet, which must be studied in order to complete the course. This software is not yet fully-accessible to screen reader software. As part of this course you will need to undertake simple outdoor practical work over a period of several days, where you will observe snails and keep a record of what you see.
Written transcripts of any audio components and some of the printed course materials are available in Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF). Some Adobe PDF components may not be available or fully accessible using a screen reader and scientific material may be particularly difficult to read in this way. Large print versions of the course material can be provided on request. Other alternative formats of the course materials may be available in the future. Our Services for disabled students website has the latest information about availability.
If you use special hardware or software you must, well before the course begins, find out whether it will work with the course software. You will need to make considerable use of a personal computer. 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 booklet Meeting your needs which you can download or request from our Student Registration & Enquiry Service.
You can also find information about accessible course 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.
Course materials
What's included
Course book, DVD containing three one-hour TV programmes, an exercise built around the Evolution Megalab, online study guide, website.
You will need
A basic scientific calculator is essential.
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 2002 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
Study support
You can telephone or email a study adviser, who can help you with academic questions to do with the course and the assessment. There will also be an online discussion forum that you can use to get in touch with study advisers and other students.
Assessment
The assessment details for this course can be found in the facts box above.
You must use the online eTMA system to submit your end-of-course assessment (ECA).
For each course presentation there is a choice of two alternative dates by which you have to submit the single piece of written work for assessment: February course start completes end of April or end of July; May start completes end of July or end of October; September start completes end of October or end of January; November start completes end of January or end of April.
Students also studied
Students who studied this course also studied at some time:
Future availability
This course starts in February, May, September and November of each year. We expect it to be available at the same time four times each year.
How to register
To register a place on this course return to the top of the page and use the Click to register button. For more information and advice about registration see OU Study Explained.
About this page
An undergraduate course in Science.
Study explained
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- Level
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- - find out if you qualify for support with your fees with our eligibility checker.
- Study explained
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Student Reviews
A very interesting course, especially as I have no particular scientific bent. My only problem was the yuk factor with ...
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I enjoyed this course, and found the course book 99% Ape a fascinating read. It covers a lot of different ...
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