RAPPORT
Volume 3 Issue 1 (2018)
advantage of new technologies
which enable people to learn in a
way that meets their individual
needs […]; actively support the
student to achieve positive
personal and career development
outcomes […]”
(Open University, 2018a, p.5)
What does this mean in practice? OU
students study at a distance using skills
and knowledge developed through
activities, resources and tools provided via
module websites and, in some cases, sent
through the post. The modules are
designed and produced by a central team
comprising academics, learning designers,
media specialists, tutors and, in some
cases, students. One main teaching
experience of OU students is through the
1 language modules for the BA (Honours)
Language Studies (Open University,
2018b). While it was agreed that Personal
Development Planning (PDP) should be
incorporated, the question was how.
What is Personal Development
Planning (PDP)?
The origins of PDP and Progress Files 2
can be traced back to a number of macro-
socio-political and pedagogical debates
1
Level 2 sits mid-way through the OU Bachelor’s
Degree pathway and equates approximately to
Year 2 of a full-time three-year Bachelor’s Degree.
The Degree comprises 360 credits and students
need to acquire 120 credits at Level 2, which they
do through selecting from a range of modules
each comprising 60 or 30 credits.
2
Progress Files comprise three elements: (1) a
transcript which is the formal and accredited
record of a student’s achievements (2) a personal
record of learning and achievements (3) PDP.
learning materials themselves, where the
‘teacher voice’ is incorporated in the
learning materials (Coleman & Vialleton,
2011), as well as through tutors with whom
students have contact via asynchronous
and synchronous means and, in some
cases, face-to-face settings. OU students
are therefore taught through specifically
crafted activities that have to be explicit
enough to enable independent learning at
a distance, as well as taught more directly
by people: the ‘teacher voice’ is key.
The OU is currently exploring ways to help
students become more aware of
connections between their learning,
personal contexts and employability. In
this context, the authors were part of the
team designing and producing new Level 2
that took place in the UK around 2000-
2001 (Dearing Report, 1997; Clegg, 2004)
and work before that on learning logs and
personal development within the
Enterprise in Higher Education initiative 3 ,
for example. The main aim was to put the
autonomous learner at the centre of
Higher Education (HE) policy and practice.
The original guidelines developed to
support the implementation of the HE
Progress File (Quality Assurance Agency
[QAA], 2001) make it a recommendation
that students are provided with
opportunities for PDP and guidance to
support the process. In addition, the
Generic Centre of the Learning and
Teaching Support Network (LTSN) in the
UK produced guides which emphasized
3
The Enterprise in Higher Education initiative,
funded by the UK Government’s Department for
Employment, ran between 1987 and 1996 and
aimed to increase the effectiveness of HE in
preparing students for working life.
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