Institute of Continuing Education (ICE)
Our annual Open Day took place at Madingley Hall on Saturday 1 April 2017. Thank you to everyone that attended!
The ICE Open Day gives you the chance to hear University experts speaking on their specialist subjects, and get a flavour of what it’s like to study at historic Madingley Hall.
The morning focused on personal enrichment courses, reflecting the very best of the University of Cambridge's part-time courses in the arts, humanities, social sciences and natural sciences. The afternoon concentrated on applied, work-relevant courses in fields including coaching, educational practice, international development and writing for business.
If you have any questions about the event, or would like to be added to the mailing list for next year, please email enquiries@ice.cam.ac.uk.
10:00-10:45
How did the great social and economic changes of the 18th century impact on where you live? This lavishly illustrated taster lecture shows how people acquired new household goods for the first time. It will introduce you to the skills required to read historical documents which provide fascinating insights into peoples' homes of the past.
Hear inspiring stories from students who have begun or continued their learning journey at Cambridge. What's it really like? Can I do it? How can I prepare?
Come and enjoy a range of different kinds of book and writing that are published for children. Have a fun and quick go at creating a strong story concept, and at beginning to write that story. Will this leave you wanting more? We'll see!
An informal and open group conversation led by ICE academics on the topic of study skills and the support students receive at ICE.
A tour of Madingley Hall investigating the original Tudor fabric, the possible room use and the remarkable hidden secrets including the wall paintings and the 'borrowed' roof. Note: this tour will involve some stair climbing.
10:30-11:15
The choices available to lifelong learners are many and varied - from the village hall evening class to the Massive Open Online Course (MOOC), and everything else in between. But on what basis can students determine which forms of continuing education are right for them? This whistle-stop tour through the world of adult education will, aided by the peer-reviewed educational literature, identify seven essential questions every committed learner should ask themselves before commencing any course of study.
WWII is not only history - it is also archaeology now. This lecture gives an insight into the new discipline of Conflict Archaeology, drawing upon Gilly Carr's excavations in the Channel Islands of sites dating to the German Occupation of 1940 to 1945.
This lecture discusses a selection of works by Matisse and Picasso. As pioneers of modernism with the movements Fauvism and Cubism, they broke artistic boundaries by challenging traditional genres, such as the nude, portraiture and still life, and by redefining the roles of colour and line.
Supported by a slide show, this presentation will aim at refreshing your knowledge of all things French. It will provide a visual 'tour' of France's main regions, their landscape, tourist attractions and gastronomy. Through verbal interaction you will learn a few techniques and strategies to improve your communication skills.
11:00-11:45
It has been remarked that answers to philosophical questions have a tendency to result, not in more philosophers, but in the creation of a new discipline. Is this 'the curse of the philosopher', or does it instead emphasise the importance of asking the right questions?
The work of Charles Darwin and Gregor Mendel has had a profound influence on how we perceive and understand the fields of evolutionary biology and genetics. Hear about key events in these areas of biology and explore how they continue to be at the forefront of scientific discovery.
Do you have an interesting life - your own or someone else's - you’d like to write about? This friendly session will offer tips about get started and where to look for inspiration. Is the famous life more interesting than 'hidden' stories and how can you tease out the most compelling facts?
An informal group conversation led by ICE academics on our important and distinct role as an accessible and open part of the University of Cambridge, and clarifying what we expect from our adult learners.
Enjoy a guided tour of Madingley Hall's beautiful landscaped gardens laid out by 'Capability' Brown in the 18th century, and supplemented with Edwardian and late 20th-century features. The Gardens contain a walled garden, a courtyard garden and a meadow, all possessing a rich diversity of plants.
11:30-12:15
In the late 13th century Cambridge was a thriving trading and administrative centre. The arrival of a small group of fugitive scholars initially passed unnoticed but by the middle of the next century, the university, with its friends in high places, was increasingly identified as a challenge to civic autonomy.
Homer and Virgil, Thucydides and Tacitus, Plato and Lucretius, Demosthenes and Cicero - all long dead but still relevant today. 'Know yourself', 'seize the day' and read some of the world's greatest literature in the original Greek and Latin to discover how our world resonates with the civilisation and culture of Greece and Rome.
This will be a very good lecture about very bad lectures, or, rather, about the best depictions of lectures and teaching in literature. We will think about what literary works have had to say about the strange experiences and classroom confrontations that lectures can create, as we close-read extracts by David Lodge, Zadie Smith, Kingsley Amis and Dickens, among others.
The Anglo-Saxons ruled England for six centuries. Masters of the decorative arts, they excelled in gold and metalwork, manuscript painting, sculpture and fabrics. Exporting widely across Europe, their products combined Baltic designs with a reinterpretation of works past and present from the old world of the Roman Empire. Pity their buildings were a bit of a mess!
12:00-12:45
This talk introduces you to the elaborate 'child support agency' which was put in place so that the parents of illegitimate children could be compelled to maintain their children, as well as be punished for their transgression. It will explore the extent to which it was successful in practice and how local history allows us to assess its significance.
Hear inspiring stories from students who have begun or continued their learning journey at Cambridge. What's it really like? Can I do it? How can I prepare?
In this short taster session you'll be guided through the process of writing a 30-second screenplay. As part of the process, we'll look at how to create a compelling character, an intriguing situation and a satisfying twist at the end.
An informal group conversation led by ICE academics and our Technology Enhanced Learning team on the role of e-learning at ICE and the support you will receive to engage with technology-dependent teaching.
Now home to the Institute of Continuing Education, Madingley Hall has functioned at various times as a hunting lodge, a family home and a royal residence. Discover the fascinating past (and present!) of this 16th-century mansion, in this informative guided tour.
12:30-13:15
This talk will describe how ICE provides a welcoming and accessible gateway for part-time lifelong learners seeking to study personal enrichment and professional studies courses which draw from the world-class expertise of the University of Cambridge. The outcomes and benefits of continuing education depend on three 'capitals'. Human capital refers to the skills and qualifications held by individuals. Social capital requires participation in networks where values are shared. Identity capital is the ability to maintain healthy self-esteem, and a sense of meaning in life. This overview will summarise how ICE seeks to work collaboratively with its student base to create purposeful, diverse and friendly communities of learning which enable students to develop new skills, study alongside likeminded peers and achieve University of Cambridge qualifications.
In 2001 one of the world's first podcasts took to the air. It was the Naked Scientists and it broke new ground in helping people to appreciate and understand science. Today it's a leading science radio show consumed by millions in many countries. Creator Chris Smith will explain why he decided to mix a medical career with media, and he'll also attempt to answer any science question on anything!
Based on audio visual material and verbal interaction, this presentation will give you a taste of France, its language and its culture. You may discover new aspects of France and enjoy questioning and discussing them as well as sharing your personal experience through your travelling or readings.
Great technological improvements in glassmaking in the 11th century saw a growing desire for stained glass in churches. But there were problems. More glass did not equal more light. The glass was thick and tended to absorb daylight. It was also heavy, especially when set in lead and iron frameworks. Solving these issues would revolutionise medieval architecture.
13:00-13:45
An informal group conversation led by ICE academics and our administrative team around the typical time demands of our part-time courses, and approaches students can take to successfully manage their work-life-study balance.
13:30-14:15
Effective career management strategies are not usually taught in schools and universities. This focused career management session aimed at those starting their career journey will give you practical tips to make considered decisions and get the career you want.
Britain is fortunate is having a wealth of historic buildings, which raises not only practical questions of how to protect them but also philosophical questions on the ethics of conservation itself. ICE’s Certificate of Higher Education in Historic Building Conservation tackles these subjects and more, investigating architectural history, conservation policy and law, and the technology of historic building materials, with fieldtrips to view buildings and craftspeople at work.
14:00-14:45
Enjoy a guided tour of Madingley Hall's beautiful landscaped gardens laid out by 'Capability' Brown in the 18th century, and supplemented with Edwardian and late 20th-century features. The Gardens contain a walled garden, a courtyard garden and a meadow, all possessing a rich diversity of plants.
14:30-15:15
In this session, you will explore some competing definitions of sociology, its research methods and its theoretical approaches to society. Specifically, you will be introduced to Berger's (1962) idea of sociology as 'a form of consciousness' and explore criticisms of this definition of the discipline. Is sociology's reputation as a subversive science justified?
Would you like to understand more about migration and why it matters for International Development? In this session we will look why and where people move and what impact this has on migrant lives, the countries of emigration and immigration, as well as myths that underlie many of the discussions and policies trying to manage migration.
It took 10 years to fully sequence the human genome. Now we can sequence multiple genomes in a single day. We will explore the progressive development of genomic technology; see how it's influenced the scientist, the clinician, and the individual; and look at what the future has to offer.
Coaching is becoming increasingly recognised as a valuable approach to learning and development in organisations. In this practical taster workshop, we will explore the potential value of coaching within leadership development. How can coaches contribute to a leader's development, both effectively and safely?
The study of psychology can have wide-ranging implications on a range of professions. This talk will explore how psychology can help us to understand decision making in politics, and how psychological insights are being used by policy makers to improve the efficiency of certain services.
This workshop for teachers will give you practical ideas to get your students writing, with a particular focus on the roles of games and playfulness in generating the conditions under which creativity can flourish. It also invites you to consider broader questions about the value of creative confidence for students and teachers.
15:30-16:15
The talk will introduce the study of Cognitive Psychology with research from memory, perception and cognition, which illustrates the notion of 'illusions' or 'biases'. The notion of a 'visual illusion' may be common place, but, as we will see, the concepts of 'memory illusions' and 'cognitive illusions' have also proved influential in explaining human behaviour.
Coaching is becoming increasingly recognised as a valuable approach to learning and development in organisations. In this practical taster workshop, we will explore the potential value of coaching within leadership development. How can coaches contribute to a leader's development, both effectively and safely?
Whether you're drafting an important business letter or email, or writing the newsletter for your company or community, your readers need to understand what you're trying to convey. This session will look at how to ensure you adopt the right tone and get the reader on your side.
Now home to the Institute of Continuing Education, Madingley Hall has functioned at various times as a hunting lodge, a family home and a royal residence. Discover the fascinating past (and present!) of this 16th-century mansion, in this informative guided tour.
15:45-17:00
Effective career management strategies and the chance to spend focused time considering where you have been and where you wish to go is a rare opportunity in modern careers. This focused career management session, aimed at professionals who have already established their career but lack satisfaction or progression opportunities, will give you practical tips to get 'unstuck' and ultimately have the career you want.
16:00-16:45
In this session, you will consider the relationship between education and social justice. Research evidence related to ongoing inequalities in educational attainment and participation in higher education will be examined. It will be argued that educational research plays a vital role in promoting evidence-based policy and curriculum innovation to foster social justice.
Are you interested in global issues related to poverty, equity and aid? How do people cope with disasters? What is the role of NGOs or the United Nations? Have you wondered why Fair Trade is important, or why education is linked to human development? Our courses look at human development from both theoretical and applied perspectives and examine these in light of global issues such as climate change, resource scarcities, financial transfers and population dynamics.
The Brexit vote of June 2016 cut Britain adrift from its 40-year moorings - but what will the vote really mean for the UK’s future? And can International Relations theory help us navigate through this crisis?
16:15-17:00
If your employer may fund your course and/or provide you with study leave, what likely return on investment are they seeking? This will be a practical conversation around the value of lifelong learning to your employer.
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