Change your career, change lives

The Open University is the UK’s largest university, a world leader in flexible part-time education combining a mission to widen access to higher education with research excellence, transforming lives through education. Find out more about us and our mission by watching this short video (you will be taken to YouTube by clicking this link).

About the Role

Key Responsibilities

1. Contribute to the planning and preparation, writing and updating of distance learning modules and resources that may include the use of print, audio, video and synchronous and asynchronous computer-mediated communication.  
2. Contribute to the preparation of tutor-marked assignments, monitoring of assessment, and membership of Examination and Qualification Boards. 
3. Meet the requirement of direct contact with students through a variety of means, for example via webinars, e-moderating of forums, online conferences and research student supervision, as appropriate. 
4. Contribute to the briefing, debriefing and training of colleagues (Associate Lecturers). 
5. Contribute to decisions about curriculum, teaching and assessment strategies taking account of education policies and practice within each of the four UK nations. 
6. Conduct research and scholarship aligned with the strategic priorities of the Faculty of Wellbeing, Education and Language Studies through seeking external funding and contributions to academic publications, conferences and external activities as appropriate. 
7. Contribute more broadly to the activities of the programme and school as required. 

About You

Essential  

1. Higher degree (Masters or above) relating to Education Studies (Primary). 
2. Relevant experience of HE teaching and assessment that engages and retains students.  
3. Experience and recognised qualification relating to teaching children aged 3 – 12 years (equivalent to at least FHEQ Level 7 or SCQF Level 10, for example a PGCE or PGDE). 
4. Knowledge and experience necessary to contribute to the development and production of distance learning modules in Education Studies (Primary). 
5. Excellent command of spoken and written English, with the capacity to communicate clearly and influentially with individuals and groups of varying sizes. 
6. Ability to work effectively, flexibly and collaboratively within and across teams and contribute flexibly to shared goals. 
7. Proven ability to plan and organise work to agreed deadlines, within resource constraints, and sometimes under pressure. 
8. Demonstrable experience of having used information and communications technology for learning, teaching and collaboration with awareness of emerging technologies. 
9. Ability to engage in research and scholarship through activities such as publications and/or widely recognised and disseminated contributions to learning and teaching in Education Studies (Primary). 
10. Ability and willingness to travel for work purposes, and to live within reasonable commuting distance of The Open University in Milton Keynes. 
11. Ability to carry out the role in a way that is consistent with equality legislation and University policies.   

Desirable 

1. Experience of leading numeracy and mathematics teaching for the primary phase. 
2. Fellowship (or higher) of the Higher Education Academy.  
3. Experience of contributing to external research funding or REF submissions. 

Support with your application

If you have any questions, or need support or adjustments relating to your application, the recruitment process, or the role, please contact us on 01908 541111 or email careers@open.ac.uk quoting the advert reference number.

What's in it for you?

At The Open University, we offer a range of benefits to recognise and reward great work, alongside policies and flexible working that contribute towards a great work life balance. Get all the details of what benefits we offer by visiting our Staff Benefits page (clicking this link will open a new window).

Flexible working

We are open to discussions about flexible working. Whether it’s a job share, part time, compressed hours or another working arrangement. Please reach out to us to discuss what works best for you.

Working Location: It is anticipated that a hybrid working pattern can be adopted for this role, where the successful candidate can work from home and the office. However, as this role is contractually aligned to our Milton Keynes Office, it is expected that some attendance in the office will be required when necessary and in response to business needs, usually for Programme and School meetings. Full-time working based from our Milton Keynes site is also supported if this is preferred by the candidate.  Expenses associated with travel to our Milton Keynes site are not reimbursable.

Next steps in the Recruitment process

Interview dates are still to be confirmed. 

Early closing date notification

While most roles will remain open until the advertised closing date, applications may be reviewed on an ongoing basis. In some cases, vacancies may close earlier if a sufficient number of suitable applications have been received and equality impacts have been appropriately considered. All roles will remain advertised for a minimum of one week before any early closure is implemented.

If you have started an application or were in the process of applying when the advert closed, we encourage you to get in touch. We are committed to understanding individual circumstances and can offer further support where needed, including reasonable adjustments for applicants with protected characteristics.

How to apply

To apply for this role please submit the following documents:

• A Supporting Statement of up to 1000 words. You should set out in your statement why you are interested in the role and provide examples of where your skills and experience meet the essential criteria for this role as detailed above.
• CV

You can view your progress and application communications when you are logged into our recruitment system.  Please check your spam/junk folders if you do not receive associated email updates.