SMART

Overview

Mental health (MH) difficulties among university students are a significant and growing concern. The transition to university life involves various stressors, such as academic pressures, financial challenges, and social adjustments. These factors can worsen existing MH conditions or lead to the development of new ones. Research shows that many university students face MH issues like anxiety, depression, and stress, which can negatively impact their academic performance, engagement, and overall well-being. The Open University (OU) has the highest number of part-time distance learning and mature students declaring a MH condition across the UK, and that proportion has increased year-on-year over the past decade.

To address this issue, innovative approaches tailored to students' diverse needs are essential. One promising strategy is the personalisation of teaching resources to enhance learning experiences and support MH, such as adapting instructional materials/methods, and assessments to better meet students' needs. The best ways to personalise education to effectively address MH concerns are not yet fully understood, highlighting the need for further investigation.

In this investigation, we will focus on psychology and business studies/finance students, who have the highest number of mental health issues. This should provide insight into how they would like their learning to be personalised to address their mental health needs.

There will be a clear route for educational development, targeting not only academics but also learning designers. Internally, there will a seminar for CALRG and a report highlighting recommendations/best practice (targeted at the OU’s Teaching and Learning Plan). Externally, there will be an external seminar, a SEDA publication and an article in The Conversation, that will highlight the study to a wider audience and hopefully be the baseline for further funding.

There will be improved mental health and increased student satisfaction: students in this project would feel that the institution is considering them from an authentic teaching perspective leading to reduced anxiety, depression and stress.

The Institute of Educational Technology (IET) at the Open University has, for over 50 years, led pedagogical progress in digital learning and teaching, building a history of exploring innovative ways to drive new developments.

We teach postgraduate courses only, e.g. the microcredential entitled “Teacher Development: Embedding Mental Health in the Curriculum”. Liz FitzGerald is a Mental Health First Aider for IET, and these – and her own – mental health difficulties that people face, have inspired her to apply for funding to investigate prospective teaching problems.

The role of IET

The Institute of Educational Technology (IET) at the Open University has, for over 50 years, led pedagogical progress in digital learning and teaching, building a history of exploring innovative ways to drive new developments.

We teach postgraduate courses only, e.g. the microcredential entitled “Teacher Development: Embedding Mental Health in the Curriculum”. Liz FitzGerald is a Mental Health First Aider for IET, and these – and her own – mental health difficulties that people face, have inspired her to apply for funding to investigate prospective teaching problems.