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Returning to study

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After deferring for a year due to moving and looking after my mother in law during the height of the pandemic, I am now starting A215 Creative writing module. I have received my book and I am working my way through the activities. Even though a year has passed it seems so familiar, I have no anxiety just excitement about studying again. 

Life is different, we managed to sell our house during lockdown and moved in to a rented bungalow in Hove. We have views over the South Downs which are only a five minute walk from home. All in all it's pretty perfect apart from the cost of renting. We've been searching for a bungalow to buy for the last seven months and we have seen plenty and put offers in for a few. The problem we have now  is that it is a sellers market, not enough houses and too many buyers. My husband would like to semi retire but that is not possible at the moment with the cost of renting. I wouldn't say we were desperate but we may need to think seriously about moving further afield and out of Sussex entirely.  

So my main focus for the foreseeable future is trekking round Sussex of a weekend looking at houses/bungalows and hoping we find something we can afford and, have our offer accepted, along with studying on evenings and Sundays. The good outweighs the bad.



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I passed!!

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I passed my first module with the Open University. Well done me. I am so relieved to get over this first hurdle on the path to my first degree. I have so enjoyed my first year of study. Some of it was hard going and there were occasions when I cried because I could not even form the first sentence of a TMA. But somehow you get it done and submitted. 

After a lot of thought I have decided to study A105 as my second level 1 module. I was seriously thinking of studying L101 as being the easier of the two modules. But, on reflection, I believe A105 will give me a greater grounding in the Arts and Humanities. One other reason for choosing this module is that I have been tempted to maybe change my degree from English Literature and Creative Writing to the new degree of Religion, Philosophy and Ethics for which A105 is a requirement. 

I've spent the summer re-reading the module books at a more leisurely pace and making notes that I think will be helpful for the second module. The set book for A105 is Charles Dickens, Hard Times. It's not my favourite Dickens book, it's quite a slog at the beginning but does get easier. As the start date for A105 gets nearer I am getting more excited. I cannot wait until the courier delivers all the module books and get started with the next year of study. Only 19 more sleeps to go. 

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Tutorials

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I attended my first face to face tutorial last night. I was so nervous beforehand but really needn't have been. Six of us attended and to be honest just as nervous as I was. It was interesting to hear what everyone wants to do with their degrees once we've graduated, it was a real mix. There were a few historians, one wanted to study religion and myself who wants to do creative writing. Our tutor put us at ease and we talked through one of the chapters and had a brief discussion on essay writing and how the OU would like us to set them out, we touched on referencing, which is my biggest worry but as our tutor said essay means "to try", which is exactly what I am going to do. I left feeling happier that I have not made a big mistake and that through 'trying' I will develop and become better and, most of all, enjoy what I am doing.  big grin

Permalink 1 comment (latest comment by Simon Reed, Friday, 2 Nov 2018, 09:06)
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Virgin blogger

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Edited by Lisa Hartwell, Sunday, 2 Sept 2018, 15:42

I thought I would jump straight into this blog malarkey. I am about to start on a degree in English Literature and Creative Writing. Six years of studying seems extremely daunting having left school in 1985. It seems a life time ago, Duran Duran and Wham were in the charts and I started my first job at Gatwick Airport. 

My books have arrived and I have read the study companion from cover to cover. I will be using One Note to take notes, it is so easy to use you can insert webpages, links, record audio and video and best of all it saves automatically. I have it saved in the cloud so that I can easily access it from anywhere. 

I read Doctor Faustus, which is part of the reading for AA100, over the summer and today I have booked to see it performed at  The Globe Theatre in London in December. Only three months to wait! I'm very lucky to live so close to London. I've never been to the Globe Theatre, I have walked past it on numerous occasions and always wanted to go in and now I will be. I am a happy bunny. 

This weekend I will be starting studying. I have no other plans so seems like a good time to get my head around what I have to do and put together a study plan. I'll let you know how it goes!!




Permalink 1 comment (latest comment by Fiona Ward, Saturday, 1 Sept 2018, 12:09)
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