As we draw to the end of the academic year, the time has come to say goodbye to this blogging position. This post will be my last, and with that in mind I will use it to reflect on my time over the past three years as a SAGE Scholar.

I first came across this opportunity in one of my first year lectures; the library and SAGE were looking for first years to take part in their three year blogging bursary and I thought, “hmm sounds interesting”. What really attracted me to this position was that I had had previous blogging experience from when I went travelling, and I thought I would be a good way to improve my writing and develop my voice.

Having spent three years in this position, I think what I will take the most from this experience is the ability to reflect on how I go about completing tasks, work and so on, and also how to engage with audiences in different formats, whether it be via blogs, vlogs, photos or even presentations.

A skill that I have definitely mastered over the course of the programme is being able to conduct focus groups and extract quality information from people – I have the yearly survey and focus groups to thank for that. I think that posting blogs each week has also really contributed to helping me find my writing style, allowing me to convey my thoughts and reflections in a way that’s also informative and entertaining.

I’d say what I ultimately have enjoyed the most is being able to share with people the struggles and triumphs of being a student, and having people who can relate, understand the struggle, and can learn from what worked and didn’t work so well for me.

With that in mind my favourite blog topic was the “Top 5 essay tips” post I did, people really seemed to find it useful when planning and preparing for an essay, and people are continually reading and making comments on it. I also really enjoyed making the vlog on presentation tips; I love presenting so making the vlog also felt like an extension of that. I think overall this scholarship was a growing experience, doing a blog post each week really keeps you on your feet, and also opens you up to parts of uni like resources and events that you’d otherwise miss.

As a final goodbye I’d like to thank Claire, Ant and Lucia for their support over the years, and Ollie, Aly and Jade (no longer here) for being part of the team over the three years.

Ollie

I’ve really enjoyed studying for my degree at Sussex. In first and second year I had an exhaustive overview of psychology; in third year I have had the chance to take a deeper dive into more niche subjects, including my dissertation. I’m nearing the end of my assignments/exams and I have my fingers crossed.

As for the the SAGE program – it has been a great experience. I found it interesting exploring the topics covered. It has also improved my ability to write and publish content, such as these blog posts and the accompanying social media posts. It has also been fun, and I’ve enjoyed the regular meetings and collaborations with my fellow SAGE students and our supervisor, Claire. I’d like to thank Claire for all her help in these posts; we couldn’t have done it without her.

To start with, getting into Sussex was a big milestone for me. I got in at the last minute through clearing (and I’m very glad I did!).

• Doing the SAGE program.

The SAGE program has been great; it has really improved my ability to communicate and write and publish content such as these blog posts and the accompanying social media posts.

• End of Second Year.

Like First Year, Second Year was an exhaustive overview of both the theoretical and research sides of psychology, and a great balance of challenging and enjoyable. I made friends and passed with a 2:1.

• End of Third Year.

Third year has been really challenging, but it has been great as I’ve had a chance to specialise in more niche modules that particularly interest me (such as Self-Regulation). This obviously also includes my dissertation, which has required much more independent study than other modules but has also been rewarding. I have just two weeks left of assignments/exams (fingers crossed!).

What are your milestones? Tweet us @sagestudents

When it comes to content, I’d say the module information pages on Canvas are equivalent to Study Direct. On both platforms you could find a break down of each week, containing the reading resources for that week, an overview of the week and something that is on Canvas and not Study Direct, a file-sharing forum – where you can share any documents between your peers. Where the two platforms differ is the formatting of the sites, and this I believe is where most people’s disdain for Canvas stems from. Study direct appeared to be a bit more organised so the things you needed were easier to find as a whole. I’d say Study Direct was a bit more user friendly, but obviously I am also completely biased, having used it for 3 years already.

I’d say I mostly use Canvas for finding out what readings I need to do for the week, and finding out what I need to prepare before my seminars. As a third year student a lot of the work I need to be doing is independent research so I rarely need to access canvas.

Although you are able to access lecture recordings from Canvas, one aspect from Study Direct I would like to have seen embedded in this new platform is the lecture recordings within the weekly break downs. It just feels quite unnecessary to have to navigate away from all the content found in that week for your module, just to find a list of lecture recordings, that aren’t always in order.

The calendar feature on Canvas is really useful for looking at when all your assignments are due, and you can also add tasks to complete within it too. What would be great is if your timetable was actually embedded into Canvas also so you had everything you needed all in one platform. Currently, in order to access your timetable you have to log back into Sussex Direct, which feels a bit unnecessary when it was there for you in Study direct.

I think Canvas would benefit from embedding a few more features to it, having the library subject guide within your earning platform could be really beneficial, considering most people are unaware of its existence, unless they go looking for it.  Something that Study Direct had that would be useful within Canvas is a feedback tab for all subjects; I found having all of the feedback in one place really useful. As most marks are usually released around the same time, it makes looking back over your results easier, rather than going to each module individually to search for your results.

Overall I wouldn’t say I dislike Canvas, however there are definitely aspects that can be improved to make the user experience a bit more fluid, but perhaps that’ll just take some getting used to.

Do your Canvas module pages contain the bare minimum of information or is it being used to its full potential? (i.e. do you feel it is a “virtual learning environment”)

It depends on the module. Most modules use it to its full potential, adding reading materials, exercises and all of their recorded lectures. However, some add the bare minimum and have recorded lectures missing.

What do you mainly use Canvas for? (Checking your timetable? Accessing slides before lectures? Accessing slides after lectures? Accessing your online reading list resources, group forum chats with other classmates? Etc.)

I never check my timetable on Canvas; I download it from Sussex Direct to my digital calendar at the start of term, and thereafter use my digital calendar. On my better days I look at the slides before lectures, and certainly after, when it comes to revising. Of course, I use Canvas for accessing the reading list resources. There are usually forums on modules, and they’re really helpful in answering pretty random questions about assignments. I like the calendar on Canvas with the due dates of assignments and exams, as those usually aren’t on Sussex Direct at the start of term.

Would you like to see more resources embedded within Canvas? For example, you should have your reading list embedded, but would it be helpful to have library subject guides embedded too, or supporting materials such as Skills Hub pages, etc.

Having the library subject guide would be great, as it provides quick links to great resources. I also use it for logging into the ‘Shibboleth’ account that lets me access the full-text articles.

What improvements could be made in terms of functionality, or content?

Ensuring all the recorded lectures are on there. Adding recorded seminars would also be great. Aside from that, I’m satisfied with Canvas.

What are the features you like about Canvas?

I like how each subject’s sub-site is clearly laid out. I also like the ‘Dashboard’ function which allows you to have a sort of homepage with your current modules on it, which makes navigating them faster than Study Direct

Do you have a preference of Canvas or the old Study Direct?

I have a mild preference for Canvas because I find it slightly easier to navigate around the site, especially with the Dashboard function.

Buying Textbooks

First, we discussed the decision-making process and experience of buying textbooks. Above all, students were put off buying a textbook if they only required a small section of the book for their course. In this case, students chose instead to borrow it from the library, to save money. In addition, some were put off by the newest editions of textbooks because they are more expensive, and were more likely to buy an older edition, if available.

Decisions whether to buy a textbook were heavily influenced by the reviews of the book and were unlikely to buy it if it received poor reviews on Amazon. Students mainly buy textbooks from Amazon rather than a physical bookshop because they are usually cheaper.

The main benefit of buying physical textbooks (rather than borrowing them from the library) was seen to be that one can annotate and highlight the book.

Students usually buy textbooks online (usually from Amazon), but will browse the physical book in a bookshop first to see if it’s worth buying and then order online. In addition to Amazon, students usually buy textbooks second hand from other students. In conclusion, price is usually the main factor in deciding where to purchase textbooks.

If textbooks weren’t bought at all, students accessed them through online reading list links to library copies, photocopies/pdfs found online, borrow the book from other students, Google Books, bought older editions instead, or simply don’t access it at all.

Students tended to find out about their course books on the online reading list. The last book one particular student bought was a dictionary of human geography (for dissertation topic), because it’s a book that will still be useful to them after degree.

All in all, print books were favoured by students, as they want to feel the physical book and make notes.

Layout and Features of Textbooks

Next, the layout and features of textbooks were discussed. Students agreed they don’t want unnecessary jargon. They wanted smaller reference sections to be given at the end of each chapter, rather than one big reference section at the end of the book. In addition, they wanted more pictures and figures, and fewer reams of text.

Additional Learning Resources

Other than books themselves, other resources students use to study included Ted Talks, online lectures, YouTube videos and Google, for diagrams and infographics. Students usually went online for additional resources. Students found out about these resources from classmates, the library’s recommended resources list and their lecturers.

The majority of students use videos in their studies, especially to help them understand a concept they can’t understand, finding it helpful watch a video that breaks it down. In addition, when they can’t face any more academic reading, they would rather watch a more light-hearted video relating to the topic. To search for these videos, some students use keywords relating to the topic, rather than looking up particular user accounts and searching within their content. However, others look up specific accounts and search their content (an example of an account on YouTube was Crash Course).

General Discussion

Students agreed that they would attend library workshops if they were tailored to their course. One student remarked that they would like to see and attend library workshops because it feels like “value for money” for their degree fees. Students would be more likely to attend workshops that were timetabled into their schedule because they would feel they are more important. Seeing library workshops advertised motivated the students to come in that day.

However, everyone agreed that they wouldn’t sign-up for a workshop more than a week in advance. To find out about workshops, one student liked the idea of a text message alert, while another like the idea of tailored email (e.g. workshops only for final year students). Students all agreed that they use Facebook for “calendar purposes” (e.g. event reminders and notifications) and that they would find it less intimidating attending a workshop if they had seen on Facebook that their classmates were attending.

And finally, students agreed that the Mendeley referencing tool is a lifesaver.

Disclaimer – Time seems to move at an accelerated rate of x3 so thats also a lot of fun (not).

Before any work is even attempted to be completed I will usually kick off my day with a session in the gym. I like to do this as early as possible because it helps me to feel awake, energised and like I have already accomplished something before 9am. It also frees up your day so you don’t have to sacrifice any work once you’re in the flow. – Especially important considering time moves at an accelerated rate for us!

Although my timetable only consists of one scheduled class (which sounds amazing) the volume of work that is required for that and my dissertation, plus scheduling in work, means that the vast majority of my time is swallowed up with a ton of reading.

At the end of this class I will usually head to the Global Resource Centre in the Global Studies department to carry out my dissertation research.

As much as I love the library, there just is not enough space for me to work properly, It’s so hard to find a seat, let a lone a table of this size if you’re not in there from 9AM (also you cant eat in the library, and food helps me focus – not scientifically proven)

When the snacks have finished, and that point of hunger has come back around is when I decide it’s time to head back home. But the studying does not stop there!

Food is Fuel

After a good healthy meal its back to working on that dissertation

At this point in my dissertation I am currently building my questionnaire using Qualitrics and my SAGE little quick fix guide (as you may have spotted on the table of my third picture)

And once I’m completely burnt out and my mind has turned to mush (this tends to occur around 11pm) I will sit down with my housemates and watch a movie to relax.

After bed, the process begins again! (lets hope it pays off)

We are running a focus group on Friday March 29^th 2019 from 1-2pm, and need students to participate. A complimentary lunch will be provided as a thank you.

You can read about last year’s focus group here.

To participate, please email your name, degee/subject and undergraduate status (i.e. 1st year, 2nd year, final year) to: sagestudentcaldendar@gmail.com.
If you have any questions you can email us at: 
sagestudentcaldendar@gmail.com.

• The pages are landscape, rather than the ubiquitous portrait. I don’t have a strong opinion about this, although it’s mildly novel and fun.
• The pages are nice and thick. This makes a nice change from most textbooks whose pages are so thin they crease if you turn a page too vigorously.
• Colour-wise, it’s mostly black and white, apart from the subtitles, tables and figures which are bright pink. I like this; there’s enough colour to keep it engaging, but not so much that it’s distracting. That said, some of the full-page figures are eye-wateringly pink, and could probably be toned down a tad.
• Key words are highlighted and their definitions given at the side of the page, which is very handy.
• The book is very clearly laid out, with every page stating which chapter and sub-section it’s in.
• The book provides an exhaustive view of the fundamentals of the research process. The disadvantage of this is that it doesn’t take a particularly deep dive into some of the processes described. In the research methods modules on my course, we were tested on processing data in much greater detail and complexity than is covered here.
• There are many examples of how a concept may be applied in research, such as examples of questionnaires.
• There’s an online resource, which the reader is frequently encouraged to visit throughout the book. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to access it (it’s ‘coming soon’).
• The end of each chapter presents:
  • A summary of the chapter, which is written concisely and in plain English. This might be my favourite feature of the book because it’s so full of information yet very readable.
  • A checklist which checks the reader’s understanding of the content. Basically a mini test, which would be great for exam preparation.
  • Suggested application of the content to one’s own project. Another great feature.

Overall, I thought the book was great. Its display is engaging without being OTT and its writing is clear and concise.