Still waiting to hear about what is happening with my EMA.
the OU facebook page is flooded with people who have already heard.
I should get an email this weekend.
Really need to know, so that i can plan what to do.
Still waiting to hear about what is happening with my EMA.
the OU facebook page is flooded with people who have already heard.
I should get an email this weekend.
Really need to know, so that i can plan what to do.
i am going to have no time spare to research or write it.
So my decision if i need to defer is in Limbo while i wait to find out if the OU expect me to soldier on through it, or if they are making alternative arrangements.
What will become of me and this years study?
Firstly, all the virus situations are awful, i work in health care and am currently doing 74 hour weeks to try and meet demand, 74 hours a week until i get infected.
With all the changes to how all societies are ordered across the world, and having just studied revolutions in DD316, the aftermath of the societal shutdowns we currently endure could be very difficult.
Shops in the high street were struggling before the lockdown, most will not reopen in the recession economy after the lockdown. That's 3 million people without work.
A lot of firms will realise that staff can work from home, office complexes will become empty, which puts service staff, such as cleaners/receptionists out of work.
With a recession economy firms that do survive with cut back staff numbers to save costs.
Product lines in supermarkets are simplified, international goods have/ will disappear. So although now the super markets are taking on tens of thousands of temporary staff, they won't be needed once the demand shock settles down. So more people will lose their temporary work.
Before the virus outbreak, the UK had 1 million unemployed people, 0.15% of the population. Once the lockdown is over, in the recession economy that could rise to 10 million, 15.0% of the population. That is a 10 fold increase....
How we will support 15.0% unemployed in a world recession economy is terrifying. Compounded by all the three month safety net measures currently in place from the government are based on borrowing, how can they then fund a 10 fold increase in unemployment benefits?
So whilst some officials talk about 'the economy bouncing back' once the infection rates fall, it seems that the aftermath will be more of a revolution in economic activity and social needs, things will be very different for everybody after the pandemic, not just a simple case of bouncing back to past practices.
So please do all stay safe, stay isolated and stay well.
I might have to defer.
I work in the Health Care Sector.
I have had an email from work to say that all holiday and leave from work is cancelled for the next 3 months.
If the Corona virus becomes critical, mandatory over time will be enforced, i will have mandatory over time enforced on me that means working 74 hours over 6 days a week
This would continue until i become infected or infection rates of Corona virus start to drop in the population.
There is no way i will be able to do my EMA whilst working 6 day weeks, 74 hours a week.
So for the moment i am stuck in a waiting game, but i might well have to assessment bank and defer the EMA until later in the year.
So TMA04 is due in 3 weeks.
There is a big jump up in this one, much more independent research is required.
It seems like it will be very time consuming.
This is the final marked tma of this level three module.
So i should not be surprised it is challenging.
The strike is over, got my tma3 mark back.
73%, so that's fine, i am on for a 2:1 overall.
That is fair, i work full time, so really i do not have the time to do the extra work to hit a first
Well my tutor is on strike action
TMA3 was due on the 11th of February, and still no mark has come back yet.
Think the strike ends tomorrow, so should get the marked essay back after that.
The work load for block 4 and Tma 4 has shot up,
twice as much online work and previous blocks and two chapters of the book to read every week.
So block 4 has essentially doubled the work load of previous blocks.
It is the last block mind, after block 4, it is all about the EMA.
5 weeks till tma04 is due,
Then after that, everything will be about the EMA, never done a 3000 word essay before, might be quite challenging....
Gosh, 130,000 views, that is a lot of visits to this blog!!!!
Thank you everyone. Thank you very much indeed.
Well i got my TMA03 done and submitted.
I don't think it is very good, lets see what mark i get.
Got to get tma 3 done this weekend. Must not avoid doing it....
Must be motivated to do it....
I am not motivated at the moment.
I enjoyed seeing the chiefs win the super bowl. The coach, Andy Reid deserved the honour.
Whose idea was it to have 31 days in December and 31 days in January?
That we would be paid early in December, and then wait 7 weeks to be paid again and the end of January?
It is after all the 21st century, surely we can automate payments to the last Friday of a month, no matter what month it is?
I am only moaning because my washing machine broke last weekend, the good news, I got a new one in the sales, the bad news, I still don't get paid for another 2 days....
At least I get February and Mach off from paying council tax,
I am skint at the moment....
so we wait and wait, the pay day between December (which was paid early) and the January pay day are so far apart!!!!
Unlike the tma2 and tma3 which are only 4 weeks apart!!!
So I am skint, which is good because I have nothing else to do, or to be able to afford to do, apart form work and study.
Citizenship is the theme for block 3 and tma 3, not exactly an interesting subject, but important I suppose.
I am over half way thorough this module now, so the down hill run starts, lets just get it all finished and ty to work out what to study as my last module next year, at the moment I favour Philosophy over economics.
But that might change.....
So I got my mark back for TMA02, 74%, that means I am firmly in the 2:1 bracket so far for DD316.
TMA03 is due in two weeks, Thanks to February being such a short month, so got to get cracking with that.
So myTma2 is in, just waiting for my mark.
Only 4 weeks between tma2 and tma3, so a bit of a quick turn around.
Happy new year everyone.
Hopefully it is a good one for you all.
Just to wish everyone a happy holiday.
Be kind to each other.
I am working Christmas night and Boxing day night.
The money was too good to turn down, so 6pm to 6am it is for me tonight
i got it wrong.
I thought you started to pay back the SFE loan, 4 years after graduation.... i was wrong.
You start to pay back 4 years after you first take the loan.
So my starting to pay SFE back had nothing to do with claiming my diploma, that was just coincidence that a diploma arrives after 4 years, which is also 4 years after taking the first loan payment.
So my repayments starting had nothing to do with claiming the diploma, they would have started regardless.
So there you are, live and learn. Part time students will always start repaying their loans, before they finish their degree's.
Thank you everyone.
My view counter just chugged past 120,000.
Thank you to everyone who visits and reads this blog.
When i first started, i had no idea it would get 100 views, let alone 120,000.
It's very much appreciated.
Beware!!!!!!
As i have already mentioned, i claimed my diploma of higher education because i have completed level 2 now.
That is a good thing, a good motivator, however...
The OU changed my graduation due date with SFE, to the date i was awarded the Diploma.
So although i have 2 years left before i graduate with a degree, SFE think i have now graduated, and informed HMRC, who have started taking payment for my student loan!!!! from my wages.
One hour of phone calls later, i have sorted it out, and my graduation date has been changed to the correct date.
However it will take 6 weeks to process the change, so as well as the £62 payment to SFE for November, i will have to pay it again in December.
So please do beware, you can claim your Cert and Dips of Higher Education as you go along, but it might trigger SFE to start claiming the loan back early.
Block 2 seems more interesting than block 1.
I have always found the 'state' and what makes them legitimate interesting.
The Tma question for block 2 is tricky...
Are Liberal Democracies good?
So lets not fall into the trap of a value judgement.
I got my mark for tma 1 back.
I was very surprised, I did not think I had written anything that interesting, I was just hoping to hit a 60% for displaying understanding of the course material.
my score was 85%, so very happy about that, although very surprised by such a strong mark.
so I fluked that mark, is it better to be lucky than good...……..
Well Level 3 is certainly step up in difficulty.
You do indeed need to spend the full 16 hours per week on study, not like level 1 or 2, where I found that 6-8 hours would get you through.
The material is similar to level 2, but there is a lot more of it.
plus the TMA's now need to have outside materials brought into them, so after 4 years of 'stick to the module materials, Michael', it now becomes 'where are your outside influences, Michael'
It also seems to be a much quicker launch through the material, in order to leave the required 8 weeks at the end to do the EMA.
Oh well, best crack on then.
Got my TMA1 done and submitted in time, not sure if it is any good.
Block 2 is more interesting, all about the 'state' and what legitimises them
Level 3 is hard....
I have a TMA due in a week, and i have no idea what to write.
This blog might contain posts that are only visible to logged-in users, or where only logged-in users can comment. If you have an account on the system, please log in for full access.