Transitioning into DE200 Weekend (1)

Description

For students starting DE200 in October or February.

This weekend is designed for students moving into the core second-level module DE200. Given that most people will have had at least a year between DE100/D120 and DE200, this course provides a reminder of DE100 and a primer for DE200, as it examines how the material you have previously covered is valuable in the context of DE200. The content will also help prepare you for the new methods and theories that you will encounter in DE200 and will be equally relevant to students going via DD210, E219 or D241.

There will be eight lectures, some focused on specific topics and some with a broader focus. We can't cover every nook and cranny of DE200, but we aim to give you an understanding of the structure and the broad theoretical approaches you will encounter.

What does the weekend offer?

This weekend offers a full programme of eight talks, running from Friday evening to teatime on Sunday.  Attendees arrive on Friday afternoon/evening, with dinner served 6pm.  The weekend finishes at 3.30pm on Sunday.

As well as providing an introduction to and overview of the course, it will be an ideal opportunity to meet with other students who are about to start DE200 at the same time as you, and also to talk to some of those involved in producing and teaching the course, who will be tutoring on the weekend. The weekend is being held in parallel with other events for psychology courses so there is likely also to be the chance to meet and talk with students who have already studied DE200 and get some first-hand opinions and tips from them.

The weekend is not all hard work  and there will be ample opportunity to relax and socialise with other students in the evenings should you choose to.

What to expect

The lectures are conducted in management conference seminar rooms within the University campus, and you will have been provided with a timetable of talks and lecture notes before you arrive.

You can choose how you spend your time. If you book the residential package then you will have a very comfortable ensuite room in management conference facilities complete with bedding, towels, a hairdryer, coffee-making facilities and desk. Wifi is also included.

The full cost is inclusive of all meals and accommodation. There are no extra costs involved (except for drinks at the bar!). As well as your room and all meals this includes refreshments at break times, extensive handouts which are only available to attendees, coverage of key course material, and a welcome drink on Friday night. Non-residential places are available for a reduction, and the same breakfast, lunch, dinner and all tea/coffee/snack breaks during the day are still included.

The welcome drinks and psychology book stall are both excellent places to meet other students. All students and staff wear name badges, so it is easy to find somebody to help if you have any questions. You can enjoy your meals with a group of students in the comfortable dining room. The food is fresh, healthy buffet style catering, and there is something to entice everyone.

Finally, whilst most students leave exhausted from the learning and socialising, they comment that it is such a worthwhile weekend, and we see many of them each year as they progress their studies!

Free places

We will be offering some free places on this weekend event. This offer is only open to OUPS members and the students will have to pay their own travel expenses. Students can only apply if they have not received a free place from us previously. The applicant will need to be able to demonstrate that they have financial hardship and will need to provide proof of current receipt of benefits (such as a scan/photo of the front page of the pay award letter, giving name, address and the date of the award)  or evidence of low income (for example a screen shot of a bank statement showing salary and carers allowance) as well as a covering letter with a short personal statement of no more than 500 words.

Applications should be made before 26th July and we will inform applicants if they have been successful the following week. Please email your applications to info@oups.org.uk. Any queries should be addressed to info@oups.org.uk

Venue

The weekend takes place at Radcliffe Conference and Training Centre, University of Warwick. Both accommodation and lectures are located in the same building unless you have been informed otherwise.

Warwick is an award winning conference venue with excellent facilities. Access to the sports facilities, including the swimming pool, are included in the price. The university's central location with excellent transport links makes it easily accessible from all over the UK and Europe. There is ample free car parking.

Accessibility

Click here for information on accessibility, parking and other related facilities.

Tutors: 

Professor Frederick Toates is author of the Chapters on ‘Changing behaviour’ and ‘Language and the brain’ in DE100 and on ‘Brain Behaviour and Mood’ in DE200. He has over 42 years’ experience of OU teaching and tutoring. Also an author on other OU modules,

including SDK125, DSE212 and SDK228, his latest book ‘How Sexual Desire Works: The Enigmatic Urge’ won the 2014 PROSE Prize of the Association of American Publishers in the category of ‘Psychology’. Fred has taught undergraduate classes not only in the UK but also in Moldova, Romania, France, the Netherlands, Germany, Denmark, Sweden and the USA. Many of you will know Professor Toates from his involvement in the student forums, where he provides very helpful and timely explanations in response to students queries.

Dr Kate Hammond has been an Associate Lecturer at the Open University for nearly 10 years, teaching on a variety of psychology modules at level 1, 2 and postgraduate. She has been an OU student herself for many years as well (PhD, BSc, MSc - in that order). Her PhD looked at political spin and leadership in Ancient Rome - but almost as soon as she completed it, she discovered psychology, opening up a whole new career path. As a Business Psychologist she teaches in the Faculty of Business, for example, on leadership courses and the MBA research module. She has also taught at Kingston University and Birkbeck University of London. Her research interests are in social identity and leadership. She has also regularly trained students in psychometrics and was on the committee of The Psychometrics Forum for several years. She has authored the online section on Personality on D110 and hopes many of you will recognise her from the Study Home/Qualification Site Forum.

Dr Alan Pechey is a long-established OU, OUPS and U3A tutor. For many years he worked as a human factors consultant (most of the

time as director of his own company - Caversham Consultants Limited) advising organisations (including Barclaycard International,

Scotland Yard, the army and local government) on how to use IT or organise teams effectively. His masters and PhD from Cambridge

University, on memory for visual and verbal information, related to both cognitive and developmental psychology. He has always loved

teaching, and has taught OU psychology modules for over 25 years, focusing in recent years on E219 and DE200. Alan is a very engaging

speaker with a passion for psychology and students find his extensive knowledge and enthusiasm highly motivating.

Timetable:

Session 1: Kate Hammond and Alan Pechey

‘Introducing your tutors, DE200, OUPS weekend, and Social Psychology’

1A: What to look forward to in DE200 and this weekend’

1B: ‘Teams good, groups bad’ Where does ‘me’ end and ‘we’ begin?  A look at what social psychology can offer to our understanding of ourselves.’

Session 2: Frederick Toates

‘Biology of behaviour’Building on Chapter 7 of DE100 and with links to

Chapter 8 (Book 1) and Chapter xx (Book 2) of D120

Session 3: Kate Hamond

‘Quantitative methods’  Love them or hate them, they’re certainly useful – and coming your way.

Session 4: Alan Pechey

‘Qualitative methods. ‘Not everybody can add up and why should you?’

There are other ways to do research and different questions to be answered.

Session 5: Kate Hammond

‘Introducing SPSS – how it works and why it is our ‘friend’ not foe!’ From the basics to our first tests; a revision for those who have done D120 and an introduction for those who have done DE100.

Session 6: Frederick Toates

‘The role of genes and environment’ Building on Chapters 1 and 2 of DE100.

Session 7: Alan Pechey

‘Integration, crossing boundaries and real-world applications.’  Example 1: Perception, attention and driving

Example 2: Issues of gender development

Session 8: Frederick Toates

‘Exposing the authoritarian personality, and 'Just following orders’

Building on Chapters 1 and 2 of DE100 and Book 1, Chapter 9 of D120

Travel and directions

Click here for satnav postcodes and directions to the University of Warwick.

For campus maps go to Warwick Campus Maps.