Understanding health
On this page
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| 2 Tutor-marked assignments (TMAs) | 1 Interactive computer-marked assignment (iCMA) |
| 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
What is health and what influences it? How is health maintained and who is responsible for maintaining it? Understanding health explores these questions – asking how much we influence our own health; how much it’s influenced by families, where we live and wider society; what individuals can do to maintain their health; and how the medical profession and politicians intervene to try to keep us healthy. It also provides you with the option to gain basic computing skills including using the internet – but if you don’t want to use a computer, you will still be able to achieve 10 credit points (instead of 15).
Course content
Understanding health is a 15-point Openings course. In addition to the course book, it includes an optional course website to develop your understanding of health and help you learn new skills such as using the internet. If you decide to study the additional website materials you will receive help every step of the way – you don’t need to know anything about using a computer beforehand.
This is the perfect way to try out learning in an online environment. You don’t need to use a computer until you’ve completed the first part of the course, so if you don’t currently have access to a computer or the internet you’ve plenty of time to arrange it. For this course, you can use your own computer or one at a library or drop-in centre. However, having your own computer would be a good idea for future study, we will provide you with advice and guidance to help you buy a computer and get online. If you are new to higher education and are eligible for a free place on the course, you may also be eligible for financial help towards buying a computer and getting online. If you decide not to use a computer you will still be able to study most of the course and achieve 10 credit points. You don’t need to make a decision at the start unless you want help with funding.
This course invites you to probe beneath the surface of the term ‘health’, a word we tend to use unquestioningly without paying much attention to its meaning. By exploring some of the key issues that dominate current concerns about health – including obesity, alcohol abuse, smoking, stress at work and HIV/AIDS – the course considers how complex health is and the many factors that play a role in shaping our experience of it.
A central feature of the course is its exploration of health from four different levels or vantage points: those of the individual, the family, the locality and wider society. The starting point of the course is the individual’s experience of health: the personal factors that influence how healthy we are. You’ll then move on to examine the ways in which people’s health is shaped by their family, by their local environment (including schools and housing), and by the wider society they live in. You are invited to focus on the influences on health at each particular level and at the interventions that can be made to improve health and well-being.
Drawing upon sociology as well as biology and psychology, the course offers a multi-disciplinary perspective on health, and insights into the contributions of different academic disciplines. Through activities and assignments you are encouraged to develop your studyskills and build your confidence so that by the end of the course book you’ll be able to ‘pull together’ the story of two major health issues of our times: stress at work and smoking-related illness. If you choose to go on to study the information on the course website you will build on the knowledge you have gained throughout the course and use web-based material to study nutrition and exercise in a little more detail.
The broad-ranging nature of this course means that it will be of interest to you regardless of whether you work in the health sector. This is a course for anyone with an interest in health: parents, teachers, volunteers, senior citizens and trade unionists.
The course materials have been prepared with the needs of new learners in mind. They assume no special knowledge and no experience of studying. Taking examples from everyday life, they enable you to start from your general knowledge and interests and gradually build up to degree-level study. Study skills are key to the course, and skills such as time management, note-taking, reading for study purposes and reflection on your own learning are explored.
Entry
There are no entry requirements. The course is designed for students who have no previous experience of higher education. This Openings course is of direct relevance to anyone considering taking An introduction to health and social care (K101). It will also be useful preparation for those planning to study for either Foundation Degree in Health and Social Care (G05) or Foundation Degree in Health Sciences (G12) .
If you have any doubt about the suitability of the course, please contact our Student Registration & Enquiry Service.
Qualifications
This course can count towards most of our degrees at bachelors level. We advise you to refer to the relevant award descriptions for information on the circumstances in which the course can count towards these qualifications, because from time to time the structure and requirements of a qualification may change.
Excluded combinations
Sometimes you will not be able to count a course towards a qualification if you have already taken another course with similar content. To check any excluded combinations relating to this course, visit our excluded combination finder or check with our Student Registration & Enquiry Service before registering.
If you have a disability or additional requirement
Written transcripts of any audio components and Adobe Portable Format (PDF) versions of printed material are available. Some Adobe PDF components may not be available or fully accessible using a screen reader and mathematical, scientific or foreign language materials may be particularly difficult to read in this way. 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 opt to do the computing element of this course you will need to make use of a personal computer and the internet. If you use specialist hardware or software to assist you in operating a computer or with the types of material outlined you are advised to talk to the Student Registration & Enquiry Service about the support which can be given to meet your needs.
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 books, a DVD and course website.
You will need
Access to a telephone (preferably a landline) for contact with your tutor; and the equipment to play and watch a video DVD e.g. a television and DVD player.
Although a computer is not essential to study the 10-point version of this course, if you wish to receive and send email and use our online services you will need access to both the internet and a computer of at least the specification detailed below.
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
Support from your tutor
You will have a tutor who will keep in touch by a combination of telephone, written correspondence and, if you want, email. There are no face-to-face tutorials; all tutorials are conducted between the individual student and their tutor on the telephone. Your tutor will help you to plan your work and to think about the ideas explored in the course. Your tutor will also comment on and help you with your written work. At the end of the course you will discuss your progress with your tutor, and you will work together to review your learning.
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.
You will also be asked to submit an end-of-course assessment (ECA) based on material in the course book and, for those students who opt to do the computing element, an interactive computer-marked assignment (iCMA) based on material on the course website.
If you submit at least one TMA and achieve the appropriate standard in the ECA and the iCMA you will gain 15 credit points at Level 1 that can count towards a degree. If you do not achieve the appropriate standard on the iCMA, or you choose to opt out of submitting the iCMA, you can still gain 10 credit points from submitting at least one TMA and achieving the appropriate standard in the ECA.
Students also studied
Students who studied this course also studied at some time:
Future availability
The course starts four times a year, in September, November, March and June. Each course lasts for a maximum of 22 weeks, although you can take less time if you want to.
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 Health and Social Care and Science.
Study explained
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