Important: I understand that this course has been paritally revised for the 2011 presentation, so these notes may no longer reflect the content now being taught.
Open University DD303 – Revision Notes Index (2010)
DD303 notes – Chapter 1 – Foundations of cognitive psychology (02-01-2010)
Part 1 – Perceptual processes
DD303 notes – Chapter 2 – Attention (13-01-2010; revised 02-10-2010)
DD303 notes – Chapter 3 – Perception (22-01-2010; revised 02-10-2010)
DD303 notes – Chapter 4 – Recognition (27-02-2010; revised 03-10-2010) and Bruce and Young’s model of face recognition (03-10-2010)
Part 2 – Concepts and language
DD303 notes – Chapter 5 – Concepts (10-03-2010; revised 02-10-2010)
DD303 notes – Chapter 6 – Language processing and DRC Model (22-03-2010)
DD303 notes – Chapter 7 – Language in action and Language Production System (05-04-2010)
Part 3 – Memory
DD303 notes – Chapter 8 – Long-term memory: encoding to retrieval (01-05-2010)
DD303 notes – Chapter 9 – Working memory and the phonological loop (14-05-2010)
Part 4 – Thinking
DD303 notes – Chapter 10 – Problem solving (12-06-2010; revised 02-10-2010)
DD303 notes – Chapter 11 – Judgement and decision making (19-06-2010)
DD303 notes – Chapter 12 – Reasoning (26-06-2010)
Part 5 – Challenges, themes and issues
Chapter 13 – Cognition and emotion
Chapter 14 – Autobiographical memory and the working self
DD303 notes – Chapter 15 – Consciousness (06-09-2010)
DD303 notes – Chapter 16- Cognitive modelling and cognitive architectures (07-09-2010) and condensed notes on ACT-R (02-10-2010)
Chapter 17 – Theoretical issues in cognitive psychology
Methods Book
DD303 notes – Chapter 2 – Connectionsim (31-05-2010; revised 02-10-2010)
Blog posts
All of my blog posts relating to the 2010 presentation of DD303 can be found here: http://www.tenpencepiece.net/blog/tag/dd303/
Hi Jo,
That’s because I didn’t make notes on what used to be chapters 13, 14 (and 17 too) – so they aren’t links, just placeholders on the page – sorry! In 2010, the course was structured in such a way that it was possible to miss out 1 or 2 chapters of the final section, plus chapters that came up in TMAs weren’t examined … I’m fairly certain that’s not the case now. That’s why I didn’t create notes on those chapters … I spent the final part of he course doing as little new material as I possibly could and focussed on revision instead.
All the best with the course and I’m glad you’ve found the rest of the notes useful.
Tim.
LOL yeah it kind of dawned on me after I’d posted that comment
Hi Tim – I notice you don’t put dates in for research studies in your notes – did you put the dates in when you wrote your essays in the exam, or were the surnames enough for the tutors? It would be a huge bonus not to have to learn all the dates too. Any advice appreciated, thanks Phil.
Hi Phil,
I found myself remembering quite a few of the dates of the studies after I’d revised – so if I could remember them I put them into the answer but didn’t worry too much if I couldn’t. The exception to this was anything I brought into the answer that wasn’t from the course materials. The year I took the exam, we were encouraged to drop in new material that we’d researched for ourselves – (just a sentence or two – no more) provided that it was relevant to the topic / answer. You can see some of that at the end of my notes on the attention chapter for example – http://www.tenpencepiece.net/blog/wp-content/uploads/2010/10/DD303-Chapter2-v2.pdf
There are two or three additional pieces of information I’d found through the OU library – one of which I’d have looked to reference in my exam answer, depending on the question asked.
Hope that helps,
Tim.
Thanks Tim, that helps a lot – could I also ask if you remember how many chapters you studied for the exam – did you use a strategy where you could ‘ditch’ some? – with ours looming its a hot topic of debate, with the course director advising us to revise ALL chapters. PS On your advice I went to the revision week-end at Warwick – so glad I did, it was invaluable. Many thanks for your help (and your notes!)
Phil
Hi Phil,
When I took the exam it was fairly safe not to revise chapters that TMA questions had been on and it was also certain that all of the chapters in the methods book would come up (from which you had to select one question – I did connectionism, which is no longer covered on the course).
All of that changed the year after I did the course and yes, as far as I’m aware, it’s risky to leave out any chapter from revision these days.
However, I suspect there must be a way of revising strategically still – but as I don’t know how the course is examined these days I’m really not in a position to speculate I’m afraid. Try the OUSA DD303 forum perhaps?
Tim.
Hi Tim,
I am interested in the methods you applied to learning the DD303 material. Having done all level 2 modules I am doing DD303 next. I have never been happy about the way I am learning and struggle and spend considerable amount of time doing TMA’s. My primary interest is therefore your methods of note taking, sumamary, memorisation and examination preparation. Any information on this would be most appreciated.
Paul,
Hi Phil,
Note taking – I make them as I go along (my big mistake on DSE212 was not to start making proper notes much before I started to revise). I read either the whole chapter and supporting texts (or more often than not, a chunk of a chapter at a time) highlighting key parts on the text. Then I write my notes. I’ve always used the three column approach that you see here, with different colours to try to break the chapter down into logical chunks.
Memorising – simple really – I keep re-working the notes using pictures, mind-maps (although I’m not good with those) and writing sample essays – all by hand – in the run up to the exam. Cognitive psychology shows that active work with material (rather than just reading it) helps memory retention and recall!
Exam prep – one thing that I wish someone had pointed out to me was that if the TMAs are worth about half of the overall marks for the course (and yes, I know that’s not quite accurate), then if you spend 15 hours per TMA and there are 6 TMAs, then you should expect to spend around 6×15 hours on revision. This means starting as early as possible by making sure that you can ‘get rid’ of the last TMA early. Also, I’ve always revised strategically and I’ve been fortunate as my guesses have (largely) paid off. Knowing a reasonable number of topics really well rather than all of the topics to a moderate degree seems to have worked quite well for me.
Hope that helps and enjoy DD303!
Tim.
Thanks for the reply Tim. I have just completed ED209 and basically they changed the exam radically so that strategic planning like above, which is what I do and I suspect most students do just did not work. Out of 8 areas that I needed 2 out of only 1 came up. Nobody bothered to tell tutors, revison weekend people or the revision aiders like Cox, basically the information they gave was next to useless. A lot of complaints with most people saying basically did not even understand the questions. If this is way it is going though its going to be very challenging indeed as basically everything needs to be revised. There were even two questions that came up that related to options on TMA’s. Very interesting to see whats happends over next few months.
Hi Tim and all,
I will be starting DD303 in a few months and was just wondering if anyone on here has the DD303 main book that I can borrow it for a couple of months and will return after just so I can get ahead on my reading until the OU sends my pack out.
Thanks,
Saima
If anyone can help Saima, leave me a comment and I’ll pass on Saima’s email address to you.
Tim.
Thanks Tim
Hi Tim,
Thanks for this excellent resource. I used your ED209 notes this year in the run up to my exams. I was wondering if you have any thoughts about the following. I need to take DD303 OR DD307 this year. Would you suggest one before the other, or does it really matter which one you do first ? I the OU have come back to me stating that it does not really matter. I would like the opinion of someone who has completed these modules though. Is there a logical sequence between the two do you feel ?
.
Hi Brian,
Glad you found my old ED209 notes of use.
The OU are right – DD303 and DD307 are such different courses that it really shouldn’t matter which order you take them in. Neither builds on the other – and in DD307′s case, encourages you to critique the experimental approach to (social) psychology. However, I’m glad I took 303 first as I have a scientific/mathematical background, so for me it was definitely the easier course to do. When I started struggling with 307 the knowledge that I only needed a pass 3 on it to still achieve a 1st class honours was very comforting. However, if you’re more familiar with post-modernist thinking (or at least, comfortable with the idea) then you’ll probably find the opposite!
All the best whichever you decide to do first – as they are both excellent modules in their own right.
Hi Tim,
Great advice, thanks
thank goodness the exam is on Tuesday
All the best with it!
Tim.
any notes on chapter 3 methods book for DD303, please so behind with my reading?
Hi Nicky,
No – afraid not. The only methods chapter I studied was the (now withdrawn?) one on connectionism.
Tim.
I’m appreciative of the work you’ve put into this area, and
the great advice you’ve given. What have you gone on to do; are you
still involved with OU matters, this aside? I hope to take DD307
next Oct. – my first psy course, but I will run through the DSE212
material in advance, with the help of your notes. Last course was
AA308, phil of mind, which steered me a little in this in this
direction. Any advice, comment would be welcome, Leslie,
Dublin
Hi Leslie,
If you’ve done philosophy and are comfortable with postmodernism and constructing arguments, you’ll probably really enjoy DD307! DSE212 is good background first though.
I’m not sure you can ever really leave the OU, but I’m no longer studying with them as they have no social science or psychology masters offers at the moment. However, I’m due to be starting as a part time distance student at Leicester on their occupational psychology masters in October.
All the best,
Tim.
Ta for fast response, Tim, Leicester sounds good; prelude
to a Ph D? I take your point about not wanting to leave the OU. I’m
retired from a life in electrical engineering and took a course to
address my neglect of the humanities – have been through AA100,
A207, A222, AA308, L140 and L193. I study with the OU for the focus
this brings, though I begin to see that I might achieve this by
following people such as you and Linda Corlett. However, you are
all too rare, and possibly non-existent outside the psy area!
L
Postmodernism? I’m not sure of the implications of this – though I expect that it’s mainly to do with a kind of relativism that translates into the ‘situate’ concept in SP. I’ve become interested in Heidegger through Dreyfus’s podcasts on iTunes U, and have got as far as buying the ‘Being and Time’ book, but I’ve a way to go to understand what Derrida and others may be about. The OU seem to offer nothing on the ‘Continental’ stuff.
Discovered that DD307 doesn’t start until January, so may take A230 in Oct,, as literature is also an interest
L
So, ‘a little knowledge is a dangerous thing’, I’ ve peeked in Wendy Rogers’ book, ‘Social Psychology’, and got an idea of the postmodernism thing from a SP vp. Ignore these ramblings I’ve made as I try to fix on the scope of the subject. L
They’re very entertaining ramblings though! I’m sure you’ll enjoy DD307 … its approach to psychology provokes great debates!
Tim.
Thanks, Tim, All the Best, L