“The best thing about MOOCs is that people from all over the world can gain knowledge and skills quickly, for free and at a time and place that suits them. We’re excited to give people around the world access to information from our team of experts.”
Anna Lloyd
Head of Education Technology
Cambridge English
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Any TU student interested in English language studied, linguistics, education, or related subjects may find it worthwhile to look up this program.
Another source of MOOCs is the University of York, United Kingdom.
The University of York is a collegiate research university, located in the city of York, in North Yorkshire, England. Among distinguished alumni of the University of York is the author Anthony Horowitz, whose work is represented in the TU Library collection. The current Director of the Natural History Museum, London, Sir Michael Dixon, earned a PhD degree in Zoology from York. Computer scientists such as Gavin Wood,[133] and Chris Lilley are also York graduates. Prominent academics associated with the University of York include the literary critic F. R. Leavis, whose books are owned by the TU Library, and Adrian Leftwich an anti-apartheid activist, whose publications are also in the TU Library collection.
The University of York website announces:
Our MOOCs offer the perfect way to gain an insight into York’s expertise on subjects where we’re leading the way on life-changing research.
Courses last three to four weeks and are delivered through online videos, quizzes, case studies and discussions with your fellow learners. You can participate from anywhere in the world, totally free of charge. All you need is an internet connection and a passion to learn.
There are no entry requirements – the courses are open to anyone, regardless of background or location.
Our MOOCs are delivered in partnership with FutureLearn (futurelearn.com).
Upcoming free MOOC courses at the University of York include:
Explore the impact of digital technologies on health, relationships and society.
Length Start date Department
Three weeks 11 May 2020 University Library/Information Services
On this course, you’ll consider the impact of digital technologies on health, relationships and society. We’ll take into account our ability to use digital technologies positively, build relationships and networks, balance online and offline activities, and keep ourselves safe physically and virtually.
We will investigate new and established technologies and their impact on society, and present some of the positive and negatives of engagement. Learners will develop strategies for dealing with information overload, devising a positive digital identity, and for positive online participation.
- Introducing Art History: Discovering Public Sculpture
An introduction to art history, sculpture and materiality.
Four weeks 29 June 2020 History of Art
This course will be of interest to anyone who visits museums, galleries, or other art exhibitions.
It is ideal for learners who take an interest in culture, conservation and heritage subjects or are considering higher level study, particularly those students who may be taking A-Level Art History or an equivalent award.
If you have an interest in the public sculpture around your city or town, this course will equip you with visual analysis skills to look at, describe and learn from those artworks.
- Exploring Stone Age archaeology: the mysteries of Star Carr
Further your interest in the past and archaeology through this short course which focuses on a single case study.
Star Carr is famous in the archaeological world and on this course you’ll examine some of the amazing discoveries made there. At the site we’ve uncovered the oldest known house in Britain, the earliest evidence of carpentry in Europe and the oldest complete bow in the world.
These and other discoveries help us interpret what life might have been like 11,000 years ago. Understanding this past and our ancestors help us to understand more about the present: where we came from, the origin of everyday things, and how much we have changed. The course is for anyone with an interest in the past and archaeology, and particularly for those with no previous archaeological background who may be considering higher education.
- Nursing: the application of bioscience, psychology and sociology
An introduction to nursing and where a career in nursing may lead.
Three weeks
29 June 2020
21 September 2020
Health Sciences
Nurses work in a multitude of different areas of healthcare across the lifespan, from intensive care and emergency nursing to GP surgeries, in people’s own homes or in assisted living accommodation, in education and in research.
As a result, everyone has an opinion about nurses and what they do, however the profession remains misunderstood. This course will offer an introduction to nursing, the applied theoretical aspects of the role, and provide a greater understanding of where a career in nursing may lead.
- Exploring everyday chemistry
Explore the organic chemistry behind perfume, medicine, brewing and sport from one of the UK’s leading universities.
Four weeks 29 June 2020 Chemistry
FutureLearn
An insightful look into everyday chemistry and the chance to engage with one of the most highly rated chemistry departments in the UK. Topics include searching for new antibiotics, how to make the most delicious coffee and designing performance-enhancing sportswear.
This course is for anyone interested in finding out more about chemistry. It’s particularly useful for sixth-form students looking to study chemistry at higher education level. It could be used as an alternative to completing a chemistry-related Extended Project Qualification (EPQ) and used as supporting evidence in your UCAS personal statement.
- An Introduction to Cognitive Psychology as an Experimental Science
Three weeks
29 June 2020
21 September 2020
Psychology
This course will introduce the learner to a key area in psychology: cognitive psychology. You will develop an understanding of cognitive psychology as an experimental science by running your own experiments and collecting your own data.
Through this experience, you will gain an appreciation of how we can use these methods to study the mind. We will look at the current thinking on two key areas of the cognitive psychology, ‘reasoning and thinking’, and ‘mental imagery’.
- Accents, attitudes and identity
An insightful look into how accents, attitudes and identity interact and the chance to engage with one of the largest centres for the study of sociolinguistics in the UK.
Four weeks 13 July 2020 Language and Linguistic Science
FutureLearn
This course is for anyone interested in finding out more about sociolinguistics. Topics include:
- attitudes to accents in the UK
- how sociolinguists measure accents and attitudes
- the relationship between accents and identity
- why accents matter in the real world
The course is particularly useful for sixth form students looking to study English language or linguistics at university. It could be used as supporting evidence in your UCAS personal statement.
As we see, there are course subjects of interest to TU students is many different faculties. It may be informative to take a course in a subject the student knows nothing about, or as backup information for subjects which the student is already interested in. MOOCs remind us that learning should be fun and entertaining. By becoming acquainted briefly with new subjects, we may wish to study them in depth at Thammasat University either by remote access or after the university campuses open again.
(All images courtesy of Wikimedia Commons)
