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David McDade Post 1

18 May 2020, 1:23 PM Edited by the author on 19 May 2020, 3:25 PM

Section 2, Activity 1

This thread is for section 2, activity 1 Dinos

Think about the ‘traditional’ role of a face-to-face teacher. In what ways do you think working as a tutor would differ from this role?

These are examples of the types of posts we might expect to see:

"There is reduced face-to-face contact and so there is the danger of students feeling isolated.

"Identifying the needs of students is not as clear-cut as in a classroom and, therefore, early discussions with students are very important."

Use the "Reply" button below to contribute to this discussion.

(Image CC BY-NC-SA 2.0 Flickr user Mooshme https://www.flickr.com/photos/Mooshme/)

David Sherlock Post 2 (summarised) in reply to 1

4 June 2020, 3:41 PM
Thinking about my face-to-face teaching experiences, there are certain types...
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David McDade Post 3 (summarised) in reply to 2

4 June 2020, 4:02 PM
Hello David, Yes, there are lots of other opportunities to engage with...
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Lucy Bailey Post 5 (summarised) in reply to 2

6 June 2020, 2:52 PM
I agree David, when in a face-to-face teaching environment there is the...
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Lucy Gillett Post 4 (summarised) in reply to 1

4 June 2020, 10:52 PM
In a face to face environment an 'ice breaker' happens as a part of the...
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Marcus Young Post 22 (summarised) in reply to 4

12 June 2020, 5:57 PM
Hi Lucy, I think you've made a really important point there. For some...
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Lucy Bailey Post 6 (summarised) in reply to 1

6 June 2020, 2:56 PM
I can relate to the feeling of isolation that students can feel whilst...
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Brian Morton Post 7 (summarised) in reply to 6

6 June 2020, 6:42 PM
I agree with all your thoughts totally. Being a student with the OU and...
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Jenny Bakkali Post 8 (summarised) in reply to 7

7 June 2020, 5:04 PM
Hi Brian, Welcome to the course and the forum. Could post in the...
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Tamara Lopez Post 9 (summarised) in reply to 1

7 June 2020, 9:07 PM
As an undergraduate, I was always a committed and engaged student in class....
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Jenny Bakkali Post 10 (summarised) in reply to 9

8 June 2020, 10:42 AM
I find, that as you get to know your students, you get a feel for the level...
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Heather Yorston Post 11 (summarised) in reply to 1

8 June 2020, 5:54 PM
It is hard on a telephone call when you can't read the body language of a...
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Jenny Bakkali Post 12 (summarised) in reply to 11

8 June 2020, 7:28 PM
Hi Heather, You can only communicate with methods that a student is...
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Ben Pike Post 13 (summarised) in reply to 1

9 June 2020, 12:12 PM
While I agree with the other posters that the lack of face to face contact...
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Kate Sim Post 14 (summarised) in reply to 13

9 June 2020, 12:52 PM
Hi Ben, just to make it clear that most tutorials are not one-to-one. I think...
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Ben Pike Post 17 (summarised) in reply to 14

9 June 2020, 3:17 PM
Good to know. My mother is an AL and does some 1 to 1 telephone tutorials,...
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Jacqueline Jones Post 15 (summarised) in reply to 1

9 June 2020, 12:52 PM
With face-to-face teaching you can see who is engaged or not and you may find...
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Pauline Hewgill Post 16 (summarised) in reply to 1

9 June 2020, 1:09 PM
Isolation is something I've been focusing on with sixth form students during...
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David McDade Post 33 (summarised) in reply to 16

17 June 2020, 12:12 PM
Hello Pauline, You raise a couple of interesting points here. It has indeed...
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Adrian Hehir Post 18 (summarised) in reply to 1

10 June 2020, 3:44 PM
To add to what other people have written, I think student engagement could be...
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Geoff Nunn Post 19 (summarised) in reply to 1

11 June 2020, 8:59 AM

Staying motivated.

 Having experienced both the O.U. distance learning route...
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Jenny Bakkali Post 20 (summarised) in reply to 19

11 June 2020, 3:57 PM
Hi Geoff, Welcome to the course and forum, and good to hear you have plenty...
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Ian Cochrane

Ian Cochrane Post 41 (summarised) in reply to 19

17 July 2020, 2:54 PM
I agree with your observation on occasionally variable teaching quality in...
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Emmanuel Isibor Post 21 (summarised) in reply to 1

12 June 2020, 1:14 PM
I think the OU tutor’s role has been carefully designed to guard against the...
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Marcus Young Post 23 (summarised) in reply to 1

12 June 2020, 6:24 PM
I think the extent of the difference depends on whether we're talking about...
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Kate Sim Post 24 (summarised) in reply to 23

13 June 2020, 8:42 AM
Hi Marcus, The amount of direct contact varies a lot from module to module...
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Marcus Young Post 26 (summarised) in reply to 24

14 June 2020, 10:26 PM
Hi Kate, Yes, that makes sense. Very helpful, thanks. Marcus
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Cath Brown Post 25 (summarised) in reply to 23

13 June 2020, 7:50 PM
It is certainly possible to have much more contact at the Ou - when I did my...
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Sarah Green Post 31 (summarised) in reply to 25

17 June 2020, 10:57 AM
I agree with you Cath. I have found OU tutors have generally been more...
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Greg O'Connell Post 27 (summarised) in reply to 1

15 June 2020, 9:55 AM
Over the past 6 or 7 years I have taught/supported learners. In the class...
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Jenny Bakkali Post 28 (summarised) in reply to 27

15 June 2020, 1:34 PM
Hi Greg It is interesting to hear about your recent experience re the...
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Quentin McPhee Post 29 (summarised) in reply to 1

16 June 2020, 2:39 PM
In recent months and as a result of corona-virus I have changed the way that...
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Colin Jenkins Post 30 (summarised) in reply to 1

16 June 2020, 4:03 PM
The traditional classroom environment allows a more spontaneous interaction...
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Sarah Green Post 32 (summarised) in reply to 1

17 June 2020, 11:12 AM
Face to face tutorials allow an individual to see body language that can help...
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Michael Liedl Post 34 (summarised) in reply to 1

22 June 2020, 3:24 PM
The question makes me reflect on two considerations: 1. How does the OU...
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Anna Pietrzak Post 35 (summarised) in reply to 1

24 June 2020, 10:49 AM
I deliver 'class based' and online courses and from a perspective of the...
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Rachael Luck Post 36 (summarised) in reply to 1

4 July 2020, 1:58 PM

Difference from face to face

 Difference in tutor role from face to face...
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Manoj Nanda Post 37 (summarised) in reply to 1

10 July 2020, 3:55 PM

Face to Face vs Remote learning

 Think about the ‘traditional’ role of a...
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Jenny Bakkali Post 38 (summarised) in reply to 37

10 July 2020, 7:21 PM
Hi Manoj, Welcome to the course and the forum, and great to see you're busy...
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Ganiat Kazeem Post 39 (summarised) in reply to 1

13 July 2020, 10:24 PM

Adapting and reaching out

 What I have gleaned from the course so far and from...
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Kate Sim Post 40 (summarised) in reply to 39

13 July 2020, 10:54 PM
It sounds as though you are getting the right sort of ideas from the module...
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Ian Cochrane

Ian Cochrane Post 42 (summarised) in reply to 1

17 July 2020, 3:02 PM
It will be essential to respond as fast as possible to student...
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ng264

Nigel Gibson Post 43 (summarised) in reply to 42

17 July 2020, 3:34 PM
[Image] Hi Ian, While this might seem counter-intuitive it is actually not...
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Jonathan Hopkins Post 44 (summarised) in reply to 1

27 July 2020, 8:26 PM
Most of the distance learning that I was involved in historically took the...
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Gail Ollis Post 45 (summarised) in reply to 1

8 August 2020, 8:37 PM
This is a really interesting question in Covid-19 times. I've been supporting...
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Vincent Pelling Post 92 (summarised) in reply to 45

21 June 2022, 7:03 PM
I agree Covid-19 has made remote teaching/learning a new norm in some ways
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Jonathan Hopkins Post 46 (summarised) in reply to 1

19 August 2020, 6:37 PM
The thing that I have noticed about teaching remotely is that formative...
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Theresa Schrem Post 51 (summarised) in reply to 46

8 October 2020, 3:54 PM
The difficulty with formative assessment that you mention is something that I...
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Coffee on Tyne

Bill Tarpy Post 47 (summarised) in reply to 1

25 August 2020, 5:48 PM
Hi all, A long time ago in a galaxy far away I was a secondary school teacher...
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Jenny Bakkali Post 48 (summarised) in reply to 47

26 August 2020, 5:28 PM
Hi Bill In terms of knowing about students' IT/comms experience - there is no...
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Petra Wolf Post 49 (summarised) in reply to 1

17 September 2020, 4:44 PM
Thinking back on my own experience, I think an OU tutor needs to be able to...
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Theresa Schrem Post 50 (summarised) in reply to 1

8 October 2020, 3:51 PM

Section 2 Activity 1

 I think it is more difficult to develop a rapport with...
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Silvia Varagnolo Post 52 (summarised) in reply to 1

16 October 2020, 10:54 AM
I think the channels available for communication with the students are much...
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Dhouha Kbaier Post 53 (summarised) in reply to 52

25 November 2020, 10:59 AM
There are of course some drawbacks that colleagues have listed above....
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Kevin Frost Post 54 (summarised) in reply to 1

20 December 2020, 10:32 PM
Isolation has been mentioned a lot so far and for good reason I think. but I...
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Amanda Cambridge Post 55 (summarised) in reply to 1

20 March 2021, 11:56 AM
I will freely admit, prior to lock down, I had thought more about the...
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Fiona Baxter Post 59 (summarised) in reply to 55

17 June 2021, 1:12 PM
This is so important Amanda. I work with Autistic children and their...
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Bernadette Vella Post 56 (summarised) in reply to 1

13 April 2021, 7:19 PM
reflecting on my own experience as an OU Student. I wanted my tutor to...
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Fiona Baxter Post 60 (summarised) in reply to 56

17 June 2021, 1:23 PM
I agree Bernadette in that I was inspired to enter teaching by the part-time...
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Tony Sheppard Post 57 (summarised) in reply to 1

7 May 2021, 12:57 PM
It's been interesting to see how people have adapted to remote working and...
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Fiona Baxter Post 61 (summarised) in reply to 57

17 June 2021, 1:28 PM
It definitely helps to be a human being! ;) These are important life and work...
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Amanda Williams Post 58 (summarised) in reply to 1

11 June 2021, 11:08 AM
I think face-to-face and remote is very different. Although are all online...
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Fiona Baxter Post 62 (summarised) in reply to 1

17 June 2021, 1:41 PM
I've been a tutor and assessor in vocational education, within workplaces,...
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Michael Coggins-Lunt Post 63 (summarised) in reply to 1

24 June 2021, 12:01 PM
Working as an OU tutor would differ from face-to-face work as in a digital...
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This is one of my latest pictures.

Elena Sanchez-Heras Post 64 (summarised) in reply to 1

4 July 2021, 5:33 PM
A tutor at OU is the face of the university. The first point of contact for a...
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Charlotte Jukes Post 65 (summarised) in reply to 1

5 July 2021, 12:17 PM
I think there are benefits and challenges to both types of learning and...
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Ann Kretzschmar Post 66 (summarised) in reply to 1

7 July 2021, 11:04 PM
I think first and foremost students need confidence. They will initially go...
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Muzna Sadia Post 67 (summarised) in reply to 1

9 July 2021, 12:34 PM
Its a very good opportunity for the students who have responsibilities and...
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Me on the Golden Gate bridge in 2008

Stephen Butler Post 68 (summarised) in reply to 1

14 July 2021, 1:43 PM
I think one big difference is helping students transition to less of a...
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Charlotte O'Leary Post 69 (summarised) in reply to 1

20 July 2021, 12:22 PM
I think Lucy G raises a significant point here that, for some students,...
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Ann Kretzschmar Post 70 (summarised) in reply to 1

26 July 2021, 6:41 PM
Casual conversations will not happen in the same way as they would in a f2f...
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Kate Sim Post 71 (summarised) in reply to 70

27 July 2021, 8:08 PM
That is a real problem with some OU students, where they fail to respond to...
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Richard Collins Post 76 (summarised) in reply to 70

13 August 2021, 7:15 PM
Yes I can imagine that this would be an issue Ann. It's an area I could see...
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Sandra Clarke Post 72 (summarised) in reply to 1

28 July 2021, 4:57 PM

Section 2 Activity 1

 For me the difference between the face to face element...
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Suzie Miller Post 73 (summarised) in reply to 1

3 August 2021, 2:40 AM
I think the benefits I could bring to an OU tutor role is by creating a safe...
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Ann Holmes Post 74 (summarised) in reply to 73

5 August 2021, 8:03 AM
I see an AL as a more specialist role than that of a lecturer in a brick...
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Kate Blackham Post 75 (summarised) in reply to 1

7 August 2021, 5:32 PM
Last year (during Covid lockdown) I was a PGCE student and found it harder to...
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Richard Collins Post 77 (summarised) in reply to 1

13 August 2021, 7:20 PM
I think one main difference traditional role is different from being an OU...
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Robert Stocks Post 78 (summarised) in reply to 1

13 August 2021, 7:36 PM
Differing from traditional face to face teaching poses challenges in...
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Bob Moore Post 79 (summarised) in reply to 1

1 September 2021, 12:58 PM Edited by the author on 1 September 2021, 12:59 PM
There is a big difference between tutoring and teaching as we experienced it...
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Jenny Bakkali Post 80 (summarised) in reply to 79

2 September 2021, 2:30 PM
Hi Bob, Welcome to forum, hope you find it useful. Please post on the forum...
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Andrea Davanzo Post 81 (summarised) in reply to 1

2 October 2021, 2:33 PM

Part 2 Activity 1

 The time dimension is different. On ‘traditional’ role of a...
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Steven Barr Post 82 (summarised) in reply to 1

14 December 2021, 4:04 PM
Think about the ‘traditional’ role of a face-to-face teacher. In what ways do...
 [Expand all posts]

Gareth Wilcox Post 83 (summarised) in reply to 1

22 January 2022, 3:05 PM
With no face-to-face contact, the tutor and student communicate in different...
 [Expand all posts]

Kate Sim Post 84 (summarised) in reply to 83

24 January 2022, 9:49 AM
Although we currently have no face-to-face tutorials, this is due to Covid...
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Matthew Baber Post 85 (summarised) in reply to 1

25 January 2022, 11:14 AM
I think the role of a tutor differs from a face-to-face teacher mainly by not...
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Anthony McDermott Post 86 (summarised) in reply to 1

13 February 2022, 11:32 AM
As with any role, communication is key and paramount to success. in this...
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Jennie Douthwaite Post 87 (summarised) in reply to 1

24 April 2022, 10:26 AM
I've found, both during lockdown and with distance learning students, that it...
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Kate Sim Post 88 (summarised) in reply to 87

26 April 2022, 11:47 AM
Hi Jennie, A good contribution there. Could I ask you to introduce yourself...
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Ravi Rajani Post 89 (summarised) in reply to 1

16 May 2022, 8:54 AM
I think being able to communicate clearly and effectively by email and chat...
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This is one of my latest pictures.

Elena Sanchez-Heras Post 90 (summarised) in reply to 1

16 June 2022, 6:01 PM
Thinking of my face-to-face tutors during my studies I can see the great...
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Vincent Pelling Post 91 (summarised) in reply to 1

21 June 2022, 7:00 PM
I have been an OU tutor before and studied for a Masters with the OU. The...
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Nicola Cousins Post 93 (summarised) in reply to 1

8 July 2022, 3:33 PM Edited by the author on 8 July 2022, 3:37 PM
I have been both a face-to-face lecture and have also delivered a significant...
 [Expand all posts]

Colin Scott Post 94 (summarised) in reply to 1

11 July 2022, 10:22 AM
I have only completed one OU (futurelearn) online course so far and I really...
 [Expand all posts]

Richard Ormesher Post 95 (summarised) in reply to 1

5 August 2022, 5:55 PM
Obviously most student contact is online or by phone compared to regular face...
 [Expand all posts]

Jenny Bakkali Post 96 (summarised) in reply to 95

7 August 2022, 10:25 AM
Hi Richard Welcome to the course and forum, hope you find the course useful....
 [Expand all posts]

Joanne Ellis Post 97 (summarised) in reply to 1

12 September 2022, 5:25 PM
Having worked remotely and online leading meetings with up to 40 staff, I...
 [Expand all posts]

Neil Hodge Post 98 (summarised) in reply to 1

7 October 2022, 1:18 AM
Tutors will need to be flexible, the times of day they communicate with...
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Raluca-Florenta Bogdan Post 99 (summarised) in reply to 1

31 October 2022, 3:16 AM
A face-to-face learning is not always the most effective when the attention...
 [Expand all posts]

Thomas ODaniel Post 100 (summarised) in reply to 1

2 January 2023, 11:36 AM
I see it as a change of method rather than a change of role or responsibility...
 [Expand all posts]

Kate Sim Post 101 (summarised) in reply to 100

3 January 2023, 10:20 AM
Hi Thomas, Great to see all your posts from yesterday. We would really...
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Kevin David Rigotti Post 102 (summarised) in reply to 1

26 March 2023, 2:56 PM

Cost of participation

 When lockdown hit, I was part way through a PhD and...
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Khadijat Abiola Olorunlambe Post 103 (summarised) in reply to 1

21 May 2023, 8:04 PM
In a face-to-face environment, you have a lot of opportunities to engage with...
 [Expand all posts]

Joanne Nettleship Post 104 (summarised) in reply to 1

15 September 2023, 1:35 PM
I have been involved in face-to-face teaching of PhDs and postdocs but also...
 [Expand all posts]

Sergejs Afanasjevs Post 105 (summarised) in reply to 1

19 September 2023, 12:53 PM
The job of a tutor differs from the traditional role of a face-to-face...
 [Expand all posts]

Gareth Wilcox Post 106 (summarised) in reply to 1

11 October 2023, 1:50 PM
Online teaching: Differences from the traditional role of a face-to-face...
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Discussion tags: section 2