You don’t have to be at school to study a GCSE This is an unprecedented time where many students are finding themselves studying at home for the first time. The good news is, you don’t have to be at school to study a GCSE. NEC courses are studied online, giving you the flexibility to study […]
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A time for fresh starts and trying something new!
It’s the beginning of a new year and time to start work on your New Year’s resolution. So, have you decided to stop doing something, or start doing something? Now, I completely acknowledge the potential health benefits of resolutions that include giving something up. But how often have you decided to quit something on January […]
Alan Tuckett has reasons to be cheerful for adult education
After a decade of decline and policy neglect, this is suddenly the season of reviews affecting adult learners. Like number 38 buses, you wait for ages, and all of a sudden a rash of them appears at once. The independent review convened by Vince Cable has published an early report calling for a personal learning […]
A home educator’s journey – Part 9: Structuring our week
In part 9 of our ‘home educator’s journey’ series, Anna discusses how the flexibility of home education shapes her approach to a typical week. There are many ways that home educating families work and it can take time to find a pattern that suits your family. Some families have an unstructured approach and children learn […]
Celebrating 50 years of the OU
Above: NEC Chief Executive Dr Ros Morpeth showing support for the Open University Yesterday evening a distinguished crowd gathered at the House of Lords to celebrate 50 years of the Open University. An institution that through its innovation and determination has transformed the lives of millions of students, and changed the way higher education is […]
Can you do an A level in a year?
One of our most frequently asked questions, especially at this time of year, is whether you can be ready for an A level within one year when you study online. In this blog we’ll give you an honest and practical answer to that question. A levels can open doors to a vast range of degree […]
How I learnt to love learning
Today’s guest blog is written by Chris Holligan, Professor of Education at The University of The West of Scotland. Chris details how his life dramatically changed after discovering the National Extension College in the early 1970s. I left school in 1968 with no qualifications bar the incomprehensible Edinburgh Leaving Certificates. I think they were ‘donated’ […]
A home educator’s journey – Part 8: Studying GCSE Maths
Anna and Lucy are a mother and daughter who are sharing their experiences of online distance learning and home education. In this edition of ‘A home educator’s journey’ Lucy tells us what it’s like studying GCSE Maths with NEC, discusses the support she receives from her tutor, and revising for her upcoming exams. This year […]
A brief history of NEC and broadcasting
Tonight (April 25th) at 9pm, BBC 4 will be broadcasting a new hour long documentary ‘Happy Birthday OU: 50 Years of The Open University’. It will feature NEC Chief Executive Dr Ros Morpeth OBE speaking on the origins of the National Extension College and how these ideas helped form the basis of the Open University. […]
Happy 50th Birthday OU!
‘We are thinking rather of the people who cannot turn up regularly for ordinary classes, above all of married women housebound by their children, or those whose job keeps them travelling, those who are on shift-work or tied to a hospital, people who have to study in odd moments of the week if they are […]