In From isolation to impact: why student consultations matter, Scarlet James recently shared a student perspective on how engagement in consultation instilled a sense of purpose. I’m a staff member who likewise benefits from making such connections. Recently I had the pleasure of sharing time, perspectives, and actual physical space with students in our OU Belfast office. I try to speak with students as frequently as possible – how else might I identify and address challenges, or decide the steps we need to take next? Truthfully, these conversations do something else: you, our students, make me feel happy, useful, and genuinely valued. Making connections with you invigorates me and vitally shapes the changes I prioritise, particularly changes for the qualifications and modules that sit within my purview as Chair of the Open Programme Board of Studies.
Making connections between informal and formal learning
One of the changes directly informed by these conversations is the refresh of a module called YXM130: Making Your Learning Count. The name might be a little quirky, but it describes its purpose.
When first created, the module offered a way for students to bring non-formal learning – such as OpenLearn courses or other open educational resources (OERs) – into their formal university study. In practice, 150 hours of student-chosen prior learning could be combined with another 150 hours of structured study (VLE content and assessments) for the award of 30 credits. A neat idea: transform previous unaccredited learning into academic credit, as long as it meets OU Level 1 standards. This said, the most popular approach for students in YXM130 has not been to bring in prior learning; instead, they create their own bespoke Open Educational Resource (OER) learning pathway that they study concurrently with their YXM130 presentation.
Making connections
Making connections across disciplines and with the real world beyond
However, I also noticed that many students were missing out on the deeper intention of the module: developing the ability to make meaningful connections – across academic disciplines; between study and the wider world of friends, family, and work; and with one another as an academic community. Refreshing the module became an opportunity to place those connections right at its heart. From listening to students and reading their feedback closely, two needs stood out: support in making their self-chosen OER learning feel coherent, and more meaningful opportunities to learn with their peers.
Making connections: from your feedback to building a learning community
So, for the October 2026 (26J) presentation, we’ve rewoven the module with those needs in mind. Students can now frame their studies coherently in alignment with the UN Sustainable Development Goals, choosing whichever goal – or goals – resonate most with their motivations and values. Tutor Group Forum conversations and shared reflections now play a larger role, giving space for students to think together, compare ideas, and build confidence within a learning community. Responding to what our students have told us they want, we’ve even added clearer guidance on how to reflect and provide meaningful, respectful, peer feedback that empowers everyone to feel not just included but valued.
Making connections for meaningful, personally-relevant and purposeful learning
The refreshed module invites students to explore Parkrun as a context for research, consider how humour can get your message across (even when it’s a message using numerical data), and to take a critical look at how cultural collaborations – such as Band Aid – might be viewed differently today. There’s the chance to tackle head-on the evolving conundrum of AI-by-AI – Academic Integrity in a generative AI world – we’ll explore what it means to have academic integrity and how this would be practised when generative AI is available. Finally, students will design a degree pathway that feels personally meaningful – one where learning is richly and thoughtfully interconnected with your world and your future.
Refreshing the module has been a chance to act on your feedback to create something that genuinely supports the kind of connected purposeful learning that can make a real difference.
Keep making connections
So here I am with you in The Hoot to share how your voices – your ideas, your feedback, your lived experiences – have shaped what I’ve been working on. Thank you for continuing to speak, question, nudge, and inspire. It makes all the difference.
OU Community | The Open University gives you more information on how you can ‘Have Your Say’. Perhaps I’ll have the pleasure of your company and insight in the future.
Lorna Sibbett, Chair of the Open Programme Board of Studies.
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