Countdown #28: a conversation about sustainability
December 28, 2013
Sustainability, of course, isn’t just for Christmas – we can make sustainable choices in every aspect of our daily lives. This Christmas in my family we have mostly managed recycling, and all my gift wrapping was re-used from last year! But the final one of the 3Rs is more of a struggle: reduce. I’d love …
Advent calendar #26: Tips on being a FutureLearn student
December 26, 2013
Having taken several FutureLearn courses now, as well as helping to set up and deliver the Sustainability, Society and You course, my top tips for being a FutureLearn student include: Interact with the other students, it’s so much better than trying to learn alone. And… .. learn with friends. It’s fun if family or friends …
Advent calendar #21: What is a MOOC anyway?
December 21, 2013
A MOOC is a Massive Open Online Course. It is a free online course open to anyone with internet access. A MOOC is designed for large numbers of participants and is often taken for personal and professional development as well as simple interest. Participants in a MOOC can take part as much or as little as they …
Advent Calendar #20: The evolution of Sustainability, Society and You
December 20, 2013
Sarah Speight writes: When we start on January 6th, we will be into the third version of the course that is now Sustainability, Society and You and will have had the benefit of developing and refining it over a 9-month period. We have gathered feedback already from the University of Nottingham students and staff who …
Advent calendar #13: Longing for a MOOC Fairy!
December 13, 2013
Sarah Speight writes: Over the last few days, Helen Whitehead, Steven Stapleton and myself have been madly building Nottingham’s first MOOC for the FutureLearn platform: ‘Sustainability, Society and You’. We’ve run a Moodle version of the course twice now so you might think it should be easy just to transfer it from Moodle to FutureLearn. …
Advent calendar #1: A December of preparation!
December 1, 2013
Welcome to December! As we lead up to our first MOOC, Sustainability, Society and You, in January, we are going to have an Advent calendar throughout the month of December – there’ll be a short informative post every day, with tips on being a student in a MOOC, sneak peeks at content, sustainability news and …
Get ahead – read the free books on Sustainability
November 30, 2013
The open online courses on sustainability take advantage of a comprehensive series of free books that were produced on different aspects of sustainability. These eBooks and iBooks are free to download and an interesting read whether or not you’re planning to take the Sustainability, Society and You which is available now for booking on the FutureLearn website. …
Meet the MOOC Team
November 21, 2013
Nottingham’s first MOOC, ‘Sustainability Society and You’ is truly a collaborative and interdisciplinary affair. Led by Sarah Speight (left), an archaeologist and education specialist, the team includes academics and postgraduate researchers from Engineering, Chemistry, Philosophy, Sociology, Nursing, Mental Health, Business, Geography, Built Environment and Economics, supported by expert Learning Technologists. Every member of the team …
The University of Nottingham on FutureLearn
November 20, 2013
The University of Nottingham will offer free courses online as part of the FutureLearn initiative. FutureLearn is the first UK-led, multi-institutional Massive Open Online Courses (MOOC) platform. The Futurelearn proposition is to increase access to Higher Education for students in the UK and around the world by offering a diverse range of high quality courses …
Mike the Engineer
October 25, 2013
In which Mike Clifford introduces Sarah Speight to the concept of upcycling and she gains a chair. One of the academics who has made a major contribution to the Sustainability course is Mike Clifford, an Associate Professor of Mechanical, Materials and Manufacturing Engineering. Mike never says no. He was co-author of the book Sustainability and Engineering, …
