We have crafted a 12-hour PodCourse to be the minimum entry point for students of SOAS YogaStudies Online. A PodCourse is designed to be an adult educational resource with no prerequisites. Each PodCourse will be an asynchronous learning experience with a pathway forward towards further education, we like to call this ‘leisure learning.’
Each PodCourse is a topic-based course that addresses a critical issue in Yoga Studies and is exclusive to SOAS YogaStudies Online. The PodCourse material will be delivered in English by researchers, academics, and world-leading experts in their field. The virtual, modular structure is accessible anytime, from anywhere. It is hoped that in the future we will be able to offer subtitles and/or translation of PodCourses into other languages, such as Mandarin, Spanish, German, Korean, etc.
Successful completion of all ‘virtual’ assessments for a PodCourse will result in a “Certificate of Completion” for each registered student. These tangible learning outcomes may qualify for continuing education hours for Yoga teacher professionals.
A typical 12-hour PodCourse consists of three modules. Each module contains a 1-hour pre-recorded video-based lecture, as well as a further 3-hours recommended reading (self-directed study), and a 15-minute assessment (virtual quiz).
A StudyNode is a learning pathway towards education in a speciality area. Each StudyNode will be a faculty-curated selection of PodCourses that are grouped together to form a thematic ‘node’ of study.
A StudyNode will be scheduled to coincide with university term time (typically over a 12-week term). When registering for a StudyNode, each student must complete the requisite PodCourses in the prescribed order to undertake synchronous tutorials with other registered students and a lecturer. The live tutorials will enable the tutor to answer questions, help develop the student’s critical thinking skills, and provide students with feedback on self-study or assignments.
Successful completion of the course work and assessments in a StudyNode will result in a “Certificate of Completion” and may, in the future, count towards credit points for a university-recognised award qualification.
Typically, a StudyNode consists of a minimum of three PodCourses and will include special features that give students synchronous learning experiences via exclusive access to academics, such as a bi-monthly tutorial over an academic semester. Each StudyNode has a minimum of 42-hours study time, consisting of three PodCourses (36 hours) and six 1-hour Tutorials (6 hours) over a 12-week term.
