Letting a TMA go is always difficult, but this is
particularly the case for the first TMA because the tutor's preferences &
quirks are unknown, and all tutors are different. The marking scheme, if they
adhere to it, is always a bit of an unknown as well. A good thing about S284 is
the 'little and often' approach to assessment, so that each individual TMA is
only worth 8% of the total module mark, so muffing a TMA won't do that much
damage to success in the module as a whole.
Interestingly, I managed to complete the TMA and obtained
the data required to complete it a few weeks ago. I'm glad that I did because the
three external recourses that are required to complete this assignment, SIMBAD,
NED and TOPCAT, have either stopped working or are only working intermittently.
A lot of students have complained and quite rightly so. This is one
disadvantage of having a predominately online module that relies on third party
resources because there is little control over the availability and reliability
of such content.
I had a Physical Sciences Welcome Event on Wednesday, aimed at students who have recently started a Physics or Astronomy & Planetary Sciences qualification. It was advertised as 'an opportunity to learn more about your qualification and discover the support and opportunities available'. There was also a bit of self-promotion and showcasing of some of the research taking place, in addition to the predictable EDI and employability nonsense. It was, however, a bit of a shambles. The organiser openly admitted not knowing how to use Adobe Connect, had the wrong slides up at one point, and the presentation was littered with factual errors. Some parts of it were embarrassing to watch and seemed to lack preparation and planning, even though it had been advertised quite a while ago. I suspect it was designed to tick a couple of boxes, and the organiser didn’t really have their heart in it and was doing it under duress. Facilitating these types of events was one the many things that Prof Andrew Norton was very good at, and he is sorely missed.
