OU blog

Personal Blogs

Design Museum

Thank you OU. You've taught me to simplify the complex

Visible to anyone in the world

It has taken a few years longer than I had hoped, but the intellect that the OU stretched, spat out, embraced and developed is now being put to good use.

It is like writing a TMA every day ... and then cutting the word count by a quarter. The intention to make sense of academic papers as they are published; it happens to be on medicine. No, I am not an M.D, but the OU has taught me how to think and express myself.

Children of warmer, less controlling parents 'grow up to be happier.'

This article gets a plug, but it could have considerable resonance with some OU students. Brought up, as some of us were, in the 1960s, we could have had parents who were more controlling than others. They in turn, in my family at least, had their parents who brought them up in the 40s under very tight control.

So it does our heads in forever more?

 

 

 

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/298898.php

Permalink
Share post
Design Museum

The ultimate method of communication

Visible to anyone in the world
Edited by Jonathan Vernon, Tuesday, 7 Apr 2015, 10:56

Fig.1 me, bis sis, and big brother.

I remember the shorts and the wellingtons. I loved it when I stepped in a puddle so deep and the water came over the top. I had a habit of not wearing underpants which meant that dangling from a tree or turning backward somersaults gave a view of my 'bean sprout.' It also resulted in my getting my willy caught in the zip on my trousers more than once. I guess I am four and a half. There's a very similar picture of me dressed in school uniform a few weeks before my fifth birthday: shorts again, tie, blazer and cap with one sock up, and the other one down. I remember that first day at Ascham House as I waited forever to have a go on a huge rocking horse but couldn't because Nick Craigie was having a turn, also the mashed potato in the school lunch made me sick because this sloppy gunk still had the eyes in it.  The response from the teachers: all spinsters of at least 90 years of age was the same 'eat it up or you won't get any pudding!' The gooseberries and custard made me sick too.

I'm recalling all of this as I try to get my head into that of a child for the FutureLearn course 'Medicine and the arts' in which we are recalling stories of children in hospital. I had a hospital visit to have stitches put in my willy. It was a short, traumatic visit where I recall at least three people having to hold me down.

Children begin to release what matters to them with paintings and figurines, in song and play. It matters that it takes a little thought and care to figure out what a drawing, poem, song or dance means to a child. My late mother, who taught art, said that on looking at a piece of work created by a child you should only ever say, 'tell me about it.' i.e. never presume that what you are looking at is a 'house,' or a 'dog' as you may discover that this is a 'castle and a dragon,' or a 'hutch and a mouse,' or a 'prison and someone escaping.' Let them talk it through and elaborate.

Permalink 1 comment (latest comment by Sharon Hartles, Saturday, 4 Apr 2015, 21:31)
Share post
Design Museum

What the Scandinavians know about children's literature

Visible to anyone in the world

Mariella%2520Fostrup.JPG

 

With Mariella Fostrup

I liked the comment from Professor Maria Nikolajeva when she quoted Leonard Helsing as saying 'all pedagogical art is bad art, but all good art is pedagogical'. So if you write a children's book from the point of view of creating good literature the learning will come naturally.

Permalink 3 comments (latest comment by Susan Whelan, Saturday, 31 Mar 2012, 00:47)
Share post
Design Museum

E807 Children and young people's worlds: frameworks for integrated practice

Visible to anyone in the world
I find it hard to believe that I am selecting my final module as I approach my second anniversary of starting the Masters in Open & Distance Education. Has anyone done E807? I have returned to swim teaching and coaching and suspect that I will let this become a larger part of my life again.
Permalink Add your comment
Share post

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.

Total visits to this blog: 11293788