The final Online Student Forum of the 25-26 academic year was hosted by the Union of Students and the University of Derby Online Learning team on Tuesday 23rd June.
The final Online Student Forum of the 25-26 academic year was hosted by the Union of Students and the University of Derby Online Learning team on Tuesday 23rd June. Thank you to everyone who attended, it was great to see so many people there.
There was a lot of discussion around learning and teaching and student support and these points have been summarised below:
- A student on a Business Management top up asked about more guidance for using the portal, with walkthroughs for accessing learning materials, checking assignments, and performing plagiarism checks. Ahmad Timsal replied and said that basic guidance is provided at the start of each trimester which shows students how to access the modules, use the portal, and signposting to the programme page on Blackboard. From September 2 optional drop-in sessions will be offered during the trimester for students to join and ask any questions. Additionally, students can access the following links for support:
- Another question was asked regarding video content to help topic understanding. Ahmed replied that the course has a blended format of text and video-based learning, and that the BSc Business and Management is undergoing baseline assurance and the aim is to provide more videos in the text heavy areas from September.
- A student on a bridging course prior to starting their full programme of study asked about support available to online, international students. Leonard Cseh replied that students in similar situations could reach out to their PAT or programme leader for support and guidance, and additionally Develop@Derby is a helpful resource - Welcome to Develop@Derby
- A student asked about opportunities for social activities for online students. Sam Oluwadare explained that the Union have an Online Learning Community with Josie Thorne as the student leader. All online students should have received an email from Josie and there is a Teams group called Online Common Forum which is available for all online students to join and meet other students, and Josie has been putting on events which are shared in there too. Additionally, Sophie Williams added that online students are welcome on site, if they’re able to.
- A student asked about opportunities to for online learner representation. Students can register to become a student rep online.
Other links which students may find useful are:
If you missed the Forum, you can catch up via the forum recording.