It was hot. I made my regular trip to check on the moggies, me hot with the heat, them sparked out in the sun.
One – panic.
Again. Behind the bins, under the car, by the rough grass. One.
Then the car cover billowed and bustled, windlessly.
One, two.
It is expected that assignments will be returned more quickly as time goes on.
This is from prior experience, the tutors seem to be able to match their availability with marking so much better later on in the course.
There are fewer students to mark. The OU in general has a significant drop - off rate and hence the tutor will have fewer to mark.
On the other hand, marking and giving feedback may be more complex if a longitudinal approach is taken.
Lastly, there is a face to face tutorial tomorrow and any tutor with experience will appreciate the advantage to students of having their assignment marked before attending.
The expectation of lower return times has been stated and reasons why given.
Dave
Warning, this blog contains references to books other bibliophiles may find interesting, but absolutely no flash photography.
Block 1 of the introductory module AA100 has many topics, all with potential for the serious bibliophile. Are you also a bibliophile? A simple test: have you now or have you every shelved books at home one in front of the other, or on top of the other. Full obsessive bibliophiles, please do not look at the reference list, called a bibliography in the Arts.
For book 1 in AA100 we are looking at the reputations of Cleopatra, Dr Faustus, Cézanne, Faraday, Divas, Stalin and the Dalai Lama (The Open University, 2008). For very senior strategic reasons we were stripped of Faraday, leaving six book filled opportunities.
Cleopatra, although an assignment topic, was rather low key, the module material managed well enough (Fear, 2008). On the advice of others, I did, however, download a radio broadcast to listen to (Morris, 2010), a tangential move or preamble to a bibliophilic episode, opportunity missed.
Dr Faustus and Marlowe as a topic (Pacheco, 2008) was laden with book buying, both opportunities and threats. First the set book by (O'Connor, 2003 [1604]), a quaintly but cunningly named “A Text”, leaving room possibly for a sequel even the American would understand. But no, I stayed true to the course and kept calm even though there was an assignment and a reflection to be crafted, so hard core Marlowe only from York Notes (Barker, 2012).
I skipped Cézanne, Faraday, and the Dalai Lama, keeping my credit card dry for more important assignment related topics. Stalin, as in life, was irresistible (Montefiore, 2003).
Divas proved to be many faceted and too tempting. Who would have known that the TMA itself would provide a link (Sargeant, 1973), albeit purchased from the transatlantic cousins and not yet arrived. Also reading round the topic a book, borrowed not bought, from the local library (Bakker, 2012).
So far so good. Previewing the next blog, in book 2, philosophy (Warburton, 2011) and essay writing, coincidentally from a philosophy researcher at Durham (Greetham, 2008). Books harm only your credit not your mind.
Bakker, J. (2012). Behind the Rainbow: The Tragic Life of Eva Cassidy: Omnibus Press.
Barker, J. (2012). York Notes - Doctor Faustus. Harlow: Pearson Education.
Fear, T. (2008). Cleopatra. In E. Moohan (Ed.), AA100 The Arts Past and Present - Book 1 Reputations. Milton Keynes: The Open University.
Greetham, B. (2008). How to write better essays, Second Edition (2nd Ed.). London: Palgrave.
Montefiore, S. S. (2003). Stalin - The Court of the Red Tsar. London: Weidenfeld and Nicolson.
Morris, T. (Writer) & J. C. Olivia Seligman, Charlie Taylor (Director). (2010). In Our Time - Cleopatra. In T. Morris (Producer), In Our Time. London: BBC Radio 4.
O'Connor, J. (Ed.). (2003 [1604]). Doctor Faustus - the A text. Harlow: Pearson Longman.
Pacheco, A. (2008). Christopher Marlowe, Doctor Faustus. In E. Moohan (Ed.), AA100 The Arts Past and Present - Book 1 Reputations. Milton Keynes: The Open University.
Sargeant, W. (1973). Divas. New York: Coward, McCann & Geoghegan.
The Open University. (2008). AA100 The Arts Past and Present - Book 1 Reputations (E. Moohan Ed.). Milton Keynes: The Open University.
Warburton, N. (2011). A little history of philosophy. London: Yale University Press.
It seems childlike, when given a reasonable explanation, to continue with further complaints. So, when my assignment, TMA01, is late, by definition more than 10 working days since the deadline, why do I not complain?
Perhaps I should first share the given explanation. Apparently the deadline for October starts TMA05 is identical to that for February starts TMA01. More cock-up than conspiracy, right hands not using the skills that the left hand possesses kind of thing.
Now I should also reveal, or remind, that for my cohort, the next assignment, TMA02, is dependent entirely on feedback from TMA01. In olden times we could blame the post. Now, let's blame the new regime.
Hum-ho. What would Socrates do?
DAve
"Your contract requires you to mark and return assignments to the University within 14 days of each assignment cut-off date, as indicated on the module calendar. Where a student has been granted an extension to the cut-off date you should mark the assignment within 14 days of receipt."
The task was to listen to two Madonna singles and, from them, initiate my learning about the concept of ‘the diva’ , attempt to develop close listening skills and serve as my introduction to some technical language used to describe and discuss music.
So, imagine my surprise and delight when I heard “Life is a mis-story”, “everyone must stand alone”, “I feel you call my name and it feels like – home.” Only one little mystery there, easily corrected. Isn’t Madonna Australian, must be her accent.
Did I mention I imported the piece into Audacity? Nice free bit of software, I used it for the German module. So now I know what Madonna’s voice looks like. We are at the first gap on the left. Can you anticipate that some loud, noisy, rhythmic instrument is just about to join us for the first chorus? Yes, it’s the start of the lively drums.
Drum, drum a drum, “When you call my name, just a little bear ...” then some more that almost but not quite makes sense, this isn’t Faustus, it’s pop music after all. But bears, surely not. If it wasn’t repeated “just like a bear you know I’ll take you there.” The AA100 module material reminds us that ‘Song lyrics too can have multiple meanings, chiefly depending on how they are received and understood.’ So, bears it is then.
The question was which other character could be nominated along with the seven selected, six if you delete Faraday. I have taken the liberty of suggesting alternatives for the Open seven, with a rather personal and not entirely serous perspective.
Cleopatra is the chosen person to study reputation from a Classical Studies perspective. How about, as an alternative, Boudica, also known as Boadicea. We could include spelling and pronunciation here.
English literature is studied via Christopher Marlowe’s Doctor Faustus. I suggest, as it’s being produced at Keswick’s Theatre by the Lake later in the year, John Ford and ‘Tis Pity She’s a Whore. My wife and I are booked to attend a theatre school in Keswick in September, coinciding with the AA100 EMA deadline.
Paul Cézanne’s work and reputation introduces Art History. Claude Monet would be my alternative selection. No personal connection, just a favourite.
I would keep a History presence, regardless of strategic shrinkages. But fascinating as Faraday was going to be, how about a Scot? John Logie Baird grew up close to a (very) distant cousin of mine in Helensburgh, Alexander Fleming is Nobel laureate, but my choice is James Watt. I attended Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh more than a year or so ago.
Stalin promises to be so interesting in so many ways that it is difficult to replace him. Stalin has so many facets to him. Being Scottish I would suggest William Wallace, if only to attempt to understand the recent interest, although Stalin represents more modern history and hence more accessible archive material. Alternatively, being from Arbroath, I suggest the King who signed the 1320 Declaration of Independence in the Abbey there, Robert the Bruce.
The music divas are varied, this chapter has no single person focus. Shame, I would like to learn more about Beethoven or Mozart or the Scottish singer Andy Stewart, who went to school with my sister. Luckily for him, she emigrated to Canada in the 1960s.
For Religious Studies, the role and reputation of the Dalai Lama is another hard figure to replace. Mother Teresa, an Archbishop of Canterbury or a Pope perhaps. I have actually been to Tibet and visited Lhasa, so the Dalai is my personal choice too.
I hope you enjoy my selections.
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