Achieving career change, aiding self-belief or keeping up an active mind – just some of the many reasons our students give us for taking up study as we celebrate Lifelong Learning Week.
We’re joining forces with the Learning and Work Institute to promote the value of lifelong learning, something that’s very much part of our DNA at the OU. The week includes activities and awards to mark personal achievements and encourage learning.
Returning to learning made a huge difference to OU student James Aston. The 33-year-old works part-time as an advisor and mentor with Herts County Council alongside studying for a BSc in Environmental Science with the OU.
James says he’s a “different person” through learning and part-time work.
James has autism and welcomes the helpful support he receives from his mentor, thanks to the Disabled Students Allowance, which enables him to stay on track.
He said:
“I had an awful time at school, my diagnosis of autism came prior to entering secondary school and I really struggled and had no support. I could not cope with the pace of work, or any creative work, and just switched off and had no motivation to apply myself, especially as I had no idea what I wanted to do with my life.”
James began with the OU by taking an Access Course, after a former work colleague recommended he give study a try. Now he’s onto his fourth module and says he is a different person.
“I did very well on that Access Course. I knew it wasn’t going to be easy, but it did make me realise that maybe I was much more capable than school made me feel.”
He also took part in one of Herts County Council’s Step2Skills programmes and recently impressed audiences with a presentation to 120 people.
James says:
“Before, I was doing nothing apart from going to social groups. I was feeling depressed and didn’t think I could live a fulfilling life. Now I have things to focus on and self-belief. I’m working, volunteering and studying towards my degree.
“I do really believe in lifelong learning. I’ve got a taste for learning now; when I complete this degree, I feel there is still more to learn.”
Flexibility provided the key
Sonia Milki is a trainee maths teacher in London and completed an OU degree at the age of 50, having decided to retrain and switch careers when children came along.
Sonia is close to her dream of becoming a Maths teacher.
She gained a BSc (Hons) in Mathematics and its Learning in July this year. Sonia says:
“I was determined to overcome my fear of maths by taking on the challenge of studying for a maths degree with The Open University. This was one of the best decisions I could have taken. I chose the OU for its flexibility. With the children, I couldn’t have attended a brick university as it wouldn’t work.”
During Lifelong Learning Week a conference will be highlighting and looking at how to improve literacy and numeracy, ESOL and digital skills, seen as key to adults’ life chances.
Sonia says she herself was not confident with maths whilst studying for GCSE and A-levels at school and did not do as well as she hoped.
“As I have grown older and worked in the school environment, my love for maths has been ignited with the desire to want to teach others. Considering I was an average student at school and college, especially in maths and English, I was determined to overcome my fear of maths by taking on the challenge of studying for a Maths degree with The Open University.
She stresses the importance of learning functional maths. “As a department we are working to equip these students with a functional maths qualification to experience the true value of the maths skills they can apply in real-life situations.
“I would encourage every adult no matter how low/high they feel about their maths skills to engage in some kind of brain-training puzzle games, as I have found from my experience, that some kind of mental activity involving numbers and letters keeps the brain sharp and wanting to learn more.“
Learning more has no age limit as 93-year-old Roy Palmer proves. The OU’s OpenLearn pages are a highly popular route to learning for many adults and Roy has enjoyed more than 60 free courses online over the past decade – from cyber security to diversity – on OpenLearn and with our partner FutureLearn.
Roy has studied free courses on OpenLearn and FutureLearn across a decade in his later years.
The Cheltenham care home resident says he has gained knowledge and been entertained and he is an inspiration to staff there.
“I would recommend it to anyone, it’s amazing and free! It’s not as if I am learning for a career, I am learning for my own interest.”
Read more inspiring stories about other OU students and graduates here.
Find out more about what you can learn with the OU or begin by taking a free course on OpenLearn, a microcredential or one of our short courses here and on our partner site FutureLearn.
