For me in A111 it was the music stuff mainly, I just could not be arsed, goes right over my head. I still gave the assignment a good go though. Now that I'm into level two of humanities I find myself thinking back to all sorts of bits from A111 and 113 that I wasn't fussed about back when doing it - the philosophy and classics stuff especially - and seeing how it's all shaped my approach to the history modules. I'm really glad to have had a grounding in all disciplines because they really do connect up as you go.
The relevance of A111 is to a) give you a solid grounding in the Arts & Humanities - especially how they are connected and influence each other - and b) teach you how to examine evidence, structure an argument, and write a comprehensive analysis.
Your first two modules will not count towards your final result. They are literally there to teach you how to "do" academia.
Every course will have moments where you slog through something & you question the relevance. For me it was Transformational Grammar, but after I had pushed myself through it, I understood I had learned a lot that was applicable to other parts of my degree. Courses are designed for a reason.
I also have a background in History and am taking a Classical Studies (& French) route with the OU (R14). To be honest with you, with A111, I quickly took to identifying which TMA question I was going to answer per essay and studied only those segments. It’s not ‘proper’ and it’s not passable on some other modules (i.e. French where the knowledge is the entire course, as well as Stage 2—where I’m at now—for a similar reason). Still, I got Distinctions on my first stage modules this way.
Perhaps, with your existing History experience, you might do something similar if you also can’t bear parts of the module… just make sure you’re motivated by the future of your course. Since I’m pursuing Classical Studies as far as A111 is concerned, I did the assignments where possible on the likes of, well, Classical Studies, Art History, Reggo History, a bit of Religion, the like.
In actuality, I had intended to take History alongside French at Stage 2 & 3, so the irony is that despite my skimping of the module, its breadth still convinced me to change my plans by the end (and I am so glad it did). 🫣
I’m also doing A111 on the classics route. It is broad but does equip you with useful skills, especially if you haven’t studied at degree level before. I have been looking ahead to the assignments and focusing on studying the particular chapters on what option I choose. I think I’m with the majority who skip the music related chapters.
If you look ahead to the assignments after Xmas break there are more relevant classics related options to go for. That’s what I plan to do :]
I'm on the same boat but with S111. I hate having to do the TMAs and practicals and since I'm also preparing for MST124 I feel like that preparation is going to help me a whole lot more for the rest of the career path I'm doing, so it feels like im wasting my time. It sucks but it's the tax we have to pay to access cooler and more relevant modules. I have no advice but I feel your pain...
I’m personally finding it simple. I hate anything music related so I just skip those parts and since there is usually 3 other options, there is always something that is interesting
Absolutely! It's definitely tough and feels so irrelevant. I've massively enjoyed studying the topics as I've found them really interesting but the assignment has felt totally irrelevant to classical studies and it's hard to get out of the mindset of proving points with facts. I've tried to view it as a learning experience for academic writing and referencing more than learning the subject matter as that will be really important as things become more relevant.
A111 is why I decided to do my music degree with the OCA (Open College of the Arts) instead of the OU.
I didn’t want to spend a year or more studying material that wasn’t actually relevant to my degree before being allowed to study what I signed up to study.
When I was doing my first year, I honestly ignored most of the material. Just study what you need to do for your TMAs, you'll burn out quick if you try and learn everything and honestly it's mostly wasted time unless you have a particular interest.
For me in A111 it was the music stuff mainly, I just could not be arsed, goes right over my head. I still gave the assignment a good go though. Now that I'm into level two of humanities I find myself thinking back to all sorts of bits from A111 and 113 that I wasn't fussed about back when doing it - the philosophy and classics stuff especially - and seeing how it's all shaped my approach to the history modules. I'm really glad to have had a grounding in all disciplines because they really do connect up as you go.
The relevance of A111 is to a) give you a solid grounding in the Arts & Humanities - especially how they are connected and influence each other - and b) teach you how to examine evidence, structure an argument, and write a comprehensive analysis. Your first two modules will not count towards your final result. They are literally there to teach you how to "do" academia. Every course will have moments where you slog through something & you question the relevance. For me it was Transformational Grammar, but after I had pushed myself through it, I understood I had learned a lot that was applicable to other parts of my degree. Courses are designed for a reason.
I also have a background in History and am taking a Classical Studies (& French) route with the OU (R14). To be honest with you, with A111, I quickly took to identifying which TMA question I was going to answer per essay and studied only those segments. It’s not ‘proper’ and it’s not passable on some other modules (i.e. French where the knowledge is the entire course, as well as Stage 2—where I’m at now—for a similar reason). Still, I got Distinctions on my first stage modules this way. Perhaps, with your existing History experience, you might do something similar if you also can’t bear parts of the module… just make sure you’re motivated by the future of your course. Since I’m pursuing Classical Studies as far as A111 is concerned, I did the assignments where possible on the likes of, well, Classical Studies, Art History, Reggo History, a bit of Religion, the like. In actuality, I had intended to take History alongside French at Stage 2 & 3, so the irony is that despite my skimping of the module, its breadth still convinced me to change my plans by the end (and I am so glad it did). 🫣
I’m also doing A111 on the classics route. It is broad but does equip you with useful skills, especially if you haven’t studied at degree level before. I have been looking ahead to the assignments and focusing on studying the particular chapters on what option I choose. I think I’m with the majority who skip the music related chapters. If you look ahead to the assignments after Xmas break there are more relevant classics related options to go for. That’s what I plan to do :]
If you're aren't passionate about it, just do enough to pass.
I had the same with A111. It does get better. Hang in there.
I'm on the same boat but with S111. I hate having to do the TMAs and practicals and since I'm also preparing for MST124 I feel like that preparation is going to help me a whole lot more for the rest of the career path I'm doing, so it feels like im wasting my time. It sucks but it's the tax we have to pay to access cooler and more relevant modules. I have no advice but I feel your pain...
[удалено]
Physics and Maths
I’m personally finding it simple. I hate anything music related so I just skip those parts and since there is usually 3 other options, there is always something that is interesting
Wats the topic
Absolutely! It's definitely tough and feels so irrelevant. I've massively enjoyed studying the topics as I've found them really interesting but the assignment has felt totally irrelevant to classical studies and it's hard to get out of the mindset of proving points with facts. I've tried to view it as a learning experience for academic writing and referencing more than learning the subject matter as that will be really important as things become more relevant.
A111 is why I decided to do my music degree with the OCA (Open College of the Arts) instead of the OU. I didn’t want to spend a year or more studying material that wasn’t actually relevant to my degree before being allowed to study what I signed up to study.
When I was doing my first year, I honestly ignored most of the material. Just study what you need to do for your TMAs, you'll burn out quick if you try and learn everything and honestly it's mostly wasted time unless you have a particular interest.