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History & The Arts
Veiling
This free course explores controversies associated with the practice of 'veiling' within Islam. The Islamic 'veil', be it in the form of the hijab, niqab, jilbab or burqa (we shall explore this terminology in more detail later), has been at the centre of many different controversies. Many of these controversies can be understood in the context ...
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Health, Sports & Psychology
Can yoga help us achieve sustainable development goals?
Shonil Bhagwat explains the yogic way of understanding how individual actions relate to global challenges.
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level 2: intermediate icon
History & The Arts
Religious diversity: rethinking religion
Religion is not necessarily what you think it is! This free course, Religious diversity: rethinking religion, introduces you to a selection of the vast variety of religious beliefs and practices in Britain today. Having some familiarity with religion and belief is increasingly required to make sense of issues of local, national and international...
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History & The Arts
The First World War continues: Medina, Arabia, January 1919
When you think of the First World War, you may think of the Western Front or the dates 1914 - 1918, but did you know that this truly global war was still being fought in 1919 in the Middle East? Dr John Slight explains..
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Society, Politics & Law
What Human Rights Day means to me
Dr Fidèle Mutwarasibo is a Visiting Research Fellow in The Open University's Centre for Voluntary Sector Leadership. He reflects on his own experiences to highlight the fact that human rights are real and not just abstract aspirations.
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Health, Sports & Psychology
What happens ‘When East Meets West’?
What benefits and obstacles are there when postgraduate students with East Asian heritage partake in distance learning with a Western university? Laura Tan investigates...
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level 2: intermediate icon
Science, Maths & Technology
Babylonian mathematics
This free course looks at Babylonian mathematics. You will learn how a series of discoveries has enabled historians to decipher stone tablets and study the various techniques the Babylonians used for problem-solving and teaching. The Babylonian problem-solving skills have been described as remarkable and scribes of the time received a training ...
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Nature & Environment
Can we live harmoniously with wildlife?
In light of a man-eating tiger being killed in The Nilgiris District, India, we need to address human-animal and human-human conflict in our forests.
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Nature & Environment
What does climate change mean for Pakistan?
Pakistan will have to prepare for ever rising temperatures - and the threats that brings with it.
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History & The Arts
How radical was Martin Luther King?
His message on civil rights was unequivocal - but Paul Harvey argues that in Martin Luther King's economic and social message was his greatest claim to radicalism.
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level 3: advanced icon
Society, Politics & Law
Economics explains discrimination in the labour market
Discrimination in the labour market exists in many forms: the 'glass ceiling', ageism, racism, and so on. This free course, Economics explains discrimination in the labour market, will help you look at this problem from a new perspective: through economics. You will learn how economists have tried to understand what drives this distortion of the...
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Health, Sports & Psychology
Are mobile phones increasing health inequality in India?
The spread of mobile phone ownership has increased access to health information - for those that have them. But some practitioners are worrying about those left behind, reports Aisling Irwin.