As with all courses at Brunel, we would prefer to teach as much of our course as possible in-person, on-campus sessions. The degree to which teaching will be online versus on-campus will vary by module, and below we describe our delivery plans for all modules on the course. Full-time students will take all of the below modules in 2021/22, whereas part-time students will take some in 2021/22 (indicated with one asterisk), and the rest in 2022/23 (indicated with two asterisks).
TERM 1
PY5612 Historical and Contemporary Issues in Psychology (10 credits)**
PY5612 is a lecture-based module that can be effectively taught either online or on-campus. Accordingly, it will be delivered synchronously (on campus and online). Lectures will also be made available asynchronously as recordings that students can watch at any time, if they were not able to attend that lecture (lecture slides will also be available).
PY5630: Research Methods and Statistics (30 credits)*
In PY5630, students will learn how to analyse quantitative data with statistical software, often working in lab-based practical classes. Such hands-on learning of research methods and statistics tends to be especially well-suited for in-person learning environments, so teaching in PY5630 will tend to focus on on-campus delivery.
PY5704: Foundations of Evolutionary Psychology (15 credits)**
PY5704 involves lecture and discussion sessions that can be effectively conducted online, as well as supplemental taught material (quizzes, videos, suggested readings, etc.) that can only be accessed online. Accordingly, teaching in PY5704 will tend to focus on online delivery. Online taught sessions will be recorded and made available online, as will additional materials such as slides, quizzes, links to videos, supplemental readings, etc.
TERM 2
PY5614: Evolutionary Perspectives on Culture (10 credits)**
PY5615: Special Topics in Culture and Evolution (10 credits)**
PY5705: Foundations of Cross-Cultural Psychology (15 credits)*
As with PY5704 in Term 1, these three Term 2 modules involve lecture and discussion sessions that can be effectively delivered online, as well as supplemental taught material (quizzes, videos, suggested readings, etc.) that can only be accessed online. Accordingly, teaching in PY5614, PY5615, and PY5705 will tend to focus on online delivery. Online taught sessions will be recorded and made available online, as will additional materials such as slides, quizzes, links to videos, supplemental readings, etc.
PY5611: Preparation for Research (10 credits)** PY5613: Cross-Cultural and Evolutionary Psychology Research Methods (20 credits)*
Like PY5630 in Term 1, these two modules will involve hands-on learning of new research methods and statistical analysis techniques, and so are particularly well-suited to an in-person teaching environment. Both PY5611 and PY5613 will therefore tend to emphasise on-campus delivery.
*Part-time students take in year 1
**Part-time students take in year 2
Assessments
All but one assessment on the course are non-exams (e.g. coursework, lab reports, posters) and as normal, these will be submitted online via Wiseflow. The exam (assessment block PY5803) is a synoptic assessment that covers material taught in PY5704 (Foundations of Evolutionary Psychology) and PY5705 (Foundations of Cross-Cultural Psychology). We plan on conducting it as indicated on the PY5803 assessment block outline as a two-hour unseen on-campus examination.
Academic Support and Pastoral Care
Each of our MSc students is assigned an academic staff member from the Centre for Culture and Evolution (CCE) as their Personal Tutor. Tutors will provide information and support to help students navigate university life, and meetings with tutors can be conducted effectively either on-campus or online. Academic support is also available from module instructors and other CCE academic staff. All staff hold student feedback and consultation hours each week (two hours per week, split over two different days). These are specifically designated times when staff are available to meet, either in person or online, with students who have questions or would like feedback about their work.