Rebecca Barrett: BSc Psychology with Childhood Studies
I’m studying Psychology with Childhood Studies with hopes to become a child psychologist. The foundation year at Newman was amazing. I studied a range of interesting topics, which provoked insightful debates that has developed my outlook further. The foundation year has also prepared me to carry on my studies confidently at Newman.
I chose to explore the topic of how the digital world has changed childhood as it has become the norm to have access to the digital world, if not vital, within everyday life. This means children have a huge access more than ever to social media. I wanted to research and educate myself on how this is impacting children’s mental health. Hopefully you will find this interesting as I found creating the digital project.
Iffat Khanum: BA Studies in Primary Education
I’ve always dreamed of working as a Primary Teacher since I was little but returning to study was worrying. However, the Foundation Year was PERFECT. It got me up to date with my academic writing and digital skills. Foundation Year definitely helped boost my confidence for the coming years of study. In particular, the tutors were very understanding and supportive with every step. Thank you, Newman.
I felt this topic would be interesting to explore further. I have watched my own children grow up surrounded by technology and often discussed the impacts of the digital age on children with my friends. Although technology had brought about great benefits, the negatives do outweigh the positives and the impacts can go unnoticed.
Jade Kulik and James Place: BSc Psychology / Psychology and Childhood Studies BSc
We are Foundation Year students looking to move onto our Psychology degrees soon. Foundation Year was an opportunity to get a feel for the university and how everything works, it was also exciting to know that we’d be meeting students who would follow us all the way through to year 4! Newman have been brilliant in working with us to ensure that we have the best experience during Covid-19, and we couldn’t fault them.
We chose the particular topic of teenage anxiety because we feel that it is very prominent in today’s society, especially now during the pandemic. It gave us chance to have a better understanding of why and how it affects teenagers and how we can help minimize it.
Angela Beech: BSc Psychology
I am studying Psychology as I find it fascinating why we behave the way we do. The Foundation Year was amazing and so beneficial, helping to develop my knowledge in different areas and improve my digital skills. Newman offers, in my opinion, the best support and has an amazing Psychology department. My friend also recommended Newman, saying the university and staff are wonderful.
I chose to look at the possible link between violent video games and aggressive behaviour as it fits well with my discipline. I look at case studies and researched real life crimes, attempting to understand the reasoning behind them. On a personal level, my 13-year-old son plays video games and I wanted to see if I found that they are influencing his behaviour.
Elizabeth Keys: BA Primary Education with Recommendation for QTS
I’ve always wanted to be a Primary School teacher so this was the perfect course. Now that I have completed my foundation year, I will be studying Primary Education (3-7 Years). When I finish, the degree recommends a Qualified Teacher Status. The foundation year has helped me to feel more confident going into my first year of studies as it’s helped me to understand what is expected from me at university.
I decided to choose this topic as not only did it coincide with my chosen degree subject but as the pandemic was causing such new problems digitally for education, I felt it would be interesting to explore the effect it was having. I decided to focus on children from disadvantaged backgrounds, such as ones I came from, which I feel made me more eager to understand how much this can affect your education and even more so when blind sighted by a worldwide pandemic that halted education for many.