3,384 search results
Early adopters: What are smartphones doing to children?
Education & Development

Early adopters: What are smartphones doing to children?

...out of tiny hands. Many apps are designed to be stimulus-driven, with exciting audiovisual rewards for completing tasks. Christakis refers to this as the “I did it!” response, which triggers the reward pathway in the brain. “The delight a child gets from touching a screen and making something happen is both edifying and potentially addictive,” he says. Because of...
View article Early adopters: What are smartphones doing to children?
Article 5 mins
The range of work with young people
Education & Development

The range of work with young people

...out of it? What seems successful, and less successful, in what is done – and how should we judge? What might be done differently? As an example, here are some reflections on work with young people by Jack Provan, an RAF engineer who works with young people on a voluntary basis, who is also an Open University student. He is reflecting on how different conceptions of...
View course The range of work with young people
Level 1: Introductory 10 hrs
James Smith - Earth in Vision
Nature & Environment

James Smith - Earth in Vision

...out there and I think that’s what affected me largely. Early environmental films: Did they exaggerate? I made a film about deforestation in the Amazon and the idea was that 20 years on, what had happened? So in the late eighties all the predictions were in 20 years’ time it was going to be a desert and then I went to the Amazon and 83 percent was still intact, the...
View video James Smith - Earth in Vision
Video 30 mins
Can comedy change your life?
Health, Sports & Psychology

Can comedy change your life?

...out more about The Open University's Psychology courses Maeve Higgins once set herself a task. The Irish-born comedian wanted to see what life would be like if she stopped laughing at things that weren’t funny. Turns out it wasn’t as easy as she thought. “It was so effing hard,” she says. “Laughter is a lubricant and is expected, and it’s really hard not to do...
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Article 10 mins
Introduction to making political and social change
Society, Politics & Law

Introduction to making political and social change

...out your aims: what are you trying to achieve? It is useful to have a limited number of clear objectives; focusing on informed solutions can be useful Reach out to others: you may be able to join in with a pre-existing campaign or make your own campaign stronger by working with others Identify your target: who is the best person or group to approach to make change? Who is...
View course Introduction to making political and social change
Level 1: Introductory 10 hrs
Supporting and developing resilience in social work
Health, Sports & Psychology

Supporting and developing resilience in social work

...out of your supervision? This OpenLearn course is an adapted extract from the Open University course K315 Social work practice ...Supporting and developing resilience in social work: Learning outcomes - After studying this course, you should be able to: discuss why emotional resilience is important in social work practice and what skills and strategies are involved...
View course Supporting and developing resilience in social work
Level 2: Intermediate 10 hrs
What is COVID-19?
Science, Maths & Technology

What is COVID-19?

...out in animals, but not before being transmitted to humans. The evolutionary history of the pathogen seems to take a back seat in the news coverage, for obvious reasons, but it is important. Zoonoses, or infections which originate in animals and are passed to humans, often cause more severe disease in humans because we have not developed an optimal immune response. How...
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Article 10 mins
Have we got Wonga wrong? A defence of payday loans
Money & Business

Have we got Wonga wrong? A defence of payday loans

...out a loan for £300 you would pay back about £458 over three months. We are expensive but it’s very, very short-term. It could be a lot more if you went into your overdraft in an unauthorised way. It is difficult to argue with this logic. An unauthorised overdraft, with Santander for example, can cost anything up to £95-a-month in fees. Choosing a payday loan in...
View article Have we got Wonga wrong? A defence of payday loans
Article 5 mins