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Module versions are modules that are academically equivalent to a 'parent' module but vary from that module in that they have been tailored for different student groups. These might be different professional groups or different national or cultural groups. There are a number of different ways in which versions may vary to accommodate these groups, including:
A module version is not:
After the need for a module version has been identified within a CAU, the Curriculum Manager involved in its development should discuss the proposal with other OU units (such as the University Secretary's Office Curriculum Development Team and the Liason & Information Team (Student Services) to clarify any curricular and operational requirements before Planet is used. When the need for a module version has been authorised the record for it should be set up on Planet as soon as possible.
Module codes have up to 7 characters. There are from one to four letters followed by three numbers (e.g. ABCD 012). The alphabetical characters identify the academic unit(s) involved in the development of the module; the first alphabetical character designates the administering academic unit.
'Y' or 'Z' immediately after the first one or two letters designating the academic unit is used to indicate a special scheme, where an Open University module is presented in a particular way, to meet special requirements. The 'Y' or 'Z' is a delimiter character. The letters following the 'Y' or 'Z' delimiter help to identify the characteristics of those special requirements. For example, BYG600, a version of B600 The capable manager, is presented to Prison Service staff. UZC206 is a special scheme where a version of U206 Environment is presented to students of the City University, Bratislava, in the Czech Republic.
The use of 'X' immediately after the delimiter 'Y' or 'Z' is used to designate the electronic presentation of a module over the Internet. For example, the Internet version of M205 Fundamentals of computing is MZX205.
Academic units seeking advice on the selection of an appropriate module code for their module version should contact the Curriculum Development Team.
Creating and maintaining module version records on Planet
Once an appropriate code has been agreed for a module version, the Unit Permissions Administrator for that CAU should use screens PL000 and PL001 to set up a skeleton record for it and link with its parent module. After this point, the Contact Person should create and maintain the module version record by the completing the steps below, some of which involve using the copy tool transactions CS098 and CS040. Please note that these copy tool transactions do not (a) actively link the master and version modules in any way (b) copy data between different editions of the same module (PL005 will automatically copy data between an old and a new edtion when the new edition is created).
It is likely that there will be some data in the newly-created version record that should not be an exact copy of the master record (e.g. there may be fewer presentations, or a different tuition strategy). These differences between masters and versions should be added to the module version using the relevant transactions. For example, if the module version has a different presentation pattern, then PL019 should be amended.
The module version should then be approved and updated in the same way as standard modules are progressed through their lifecycle. Module version records will not be loaded onto CIRCE until they have achieved A6 status.
