Queen's University Open Learning

The Language of Resistance: Discovering Minority and Indigenous Voices

Cecilia Gialdini, PhD

Fee £37.50 (concession rate £30.00) - fee will amend when you select the appropriate fee rate below.

Spring 2026

5 weekly sessions on Tuesdays 2.00 pm 3.30 pm, starting 12 May

Through a series of case studies, the course explores the language and cultural activism of various linguistic minorities and indigenous groups, i.e. the Quechua people in Peru, the South Tyroleans in Italy, the Basque peoples in Spain, the Māori in New Zealand. In each class, the instructor will present one or more cultural artefacts from these communities (a song, a passage from a novel, a poem, a movie clip) showing how people use their languages to preserve and celebrate their identities. From there, the class will examine each community’s historical background and the current status of their language and cultural rights in the country. By listening to their voices, students will have also engage with broader socio-political debates.

These classes will take place on QUB campus

OLE3454 The Language of Resistance: Discovering Minority and Indigenous Voices - Products - Queen's University Belfast Shop for OLE3454 The Language of Resistance: Discovering Minority and Indigenous Voices at https://qubuk.estore.flywire.com. Cecilia

Creative Writing Courses:

How to Write a Personal Monologue - 6 May

Poetry of Resistance and Resilience - 8 May

Creative Writing - Queen's University Belfast Shop Creative Writing at https://qubuk.estore.flywire.com. Please see below our current Creative Writing courses. If you wish to return back to the main Open Learning Page please click this link

Our Climate and Ecological Crisis: Causes, Consequences and Solutions

John Barry, PhD

Fee £75.00 (concession rate £60.00) - fee will amend when you select the appropriate fee rate below.

Spring 2026

5 weekly sessions on Saturdays 10.00 am 1.00 pm, starting 9 May

This course will examine:
1. The root causes of the crisis: looking at the ethical, political, economic and cultural dimensions the causes
2. Consequences: which countries, regions and populations are most vulnerable and at risk from the climate crisis?
3. Solutions: are there technological fixes?
This interdisciplinary course will range from asking ‘why is it easier to imagine the end of the world than the end of capitalism’, to asking what is politically and culturally possible if we flip our thinking and ask not what we can do for the planetary crisis, but rather what it can do for us in terms of opening new opportunities for remaking societies and views of the good life in the 21st century?

This course will be offered online

OLE3464  Our Climate and Ecological Crisis: Causes, Consequences and Solutions   - Products - Queen's University Belfast Shop for OLE3464  Our Climate and Ecological Crisis: Causes, Consequences and Solutions   at https://qubuk.estore.flywire.com. John Barry

Investigating an Ancient Greek Sanctuary: Delphi and Divination

Aikaterini (Katerina) Kolotourou, BA, PhD

Fee £50.00 (concession rate £40.00) - fee will amend when you select the appropriate fee rate below.

Spring 2026

5 weekly sessions on Tuesdays 2.00 pm to 4.00 pm, starting 5 May

Focusing on the Oracle of Delphi and the Pythia, the course examines the historical, cultural, and spiritual significance of one of history’s most influential centres of divination. We will study myths, sacred rituals, and the interpretation of oracular messages, while comparing Delphi’s practices with other divination traditions worldwide. We will think about the motivations behind people’s oracular consultations, considering psychological and anthropological aspects of the oracular process.

This class will take place on QUB campus

OLE3610 Investigating an Ancient Greek Sanctuary: Delphi and Divination - Products - Queen's University Belfast Shop for OLE3610 Investigating an Ancient Greek Sanctuary: Delphi and Divination at https://qubuk.estore.flywire.com. Aikaterini (Katerina)

Personal Development Courses:

Living & Working Well Together with Differences - 8 May

Reimaging Life Compassionately - 8 May

Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction - 5 week course beginning 7 May

Personal Development - Queen's University Belfast Shop Personal Development at https://qubuk.estore.flywire.com. Please see below our current Personal Development courses.If you wish to return back to the main Open Learning Page please click this link

QUB Open Learning Language Courses:

Holiday German - 5 May
Let's Speak German - 6 May
Italian: Beginners' Continuation, Group 1 - 7 May
Holiday Italian Group 2 - 5 May
Italian Beginners Continuation, Group 2 - 7 May
Italian: Lets Speak More Italian - 5 May
Italian: Upper and Beyond - 5 May
Spanish: Upper Intermediate Continuation - 6 May
Spanish: Grammar Clinic -7 May
French through Creative Writing - 6 May
Advanced Intermediate Spanish - Continuation - 11 May
Italian Intermediate Vocabulary Accelerator Part 2 - 11 May

Languages - Queen's University Belfast Shop Languages at https://qubuk.estore.flywire.com. Please see below our current Language courses.If you wish to return back to the main Open Learning Page please click this link

Contracting and Expanding: The Rise of the Consumer

Laura Hill, LLB

Fee £50.00 (concession rate £40.00) - fee will amend when you select the appropriate fee rate below.

Spring 2026

5 weekly sessions on Mondays 7.00 pm to 9.00 pm, starting 11 May

This relaxed course will look at the historical, social, economic and legal issues that have given us the status of "consumer". How did our ancestors buy the things they needed then the things they wanted? We will consider the effects of industrialisation, mass-production, changing culture and increased regulation. We will look briefly at what the law says about contracts, misrepresentation, negligence, advertising and our rights in the 21st century.

This class will take place on QUB campus

OLE3486 Contracting and Expanding: The Rise of the Consumer - Products - Queen's University Belfast Shop for OLE3486 Contracting and Expanding: The Rise of the Consumer at https://qubuk.estore.flywire.com. Laura Hill, LLB

QUB Open Learning Environment courses:

Examining Climate Change Through the Lens of Literature - 7 May - QUB Campus
Woodland: A Hidden Wealth of Wildlife - 5 May - QUB Campus
How Plants Work - 7 May - QUB Campus
Native Trees: Identifying Their and Importance in Society - Taking place in Cookstown Library - 6 May
Rewilding: Breathing New Life into Conservation - 9 May - QUB Campus
The Impact of Climate Change on the Migration and Distribution of Flora and Fauna - 23 May - QUB Campus

For details of these and our other environment courses, please see the link below:

Environment - Queen's University Belfast Shop Environment at https://qubuk.estore.flywire.com. Please see below our current Environment courses.If you wish to return back to the main Open Learning Page please click this link

An Introduction to Critical Thinking

Michael Kelly, BA, MA

Fee £50.00 (concession rate £40.00) - fee will amend when you select the appropriate fee rate below.

Spring 2026

5 weekly sessions on Tuesdays 6.00 pm to 8.00 pm, starting 5 May

Critical Thinking can be defined as "the ability to interpret, analyse and evaluate ideas and arguments." It is increasingly felt that such skills are important in everyday life, a basic competency, which like reading and writing can be taught. This course endeavours to introduce the student to these techniques and examines them through the study of certain key topics. These include: identifying reasons and conclusions; understanding reasoning; the clarification and interpretation of ideas; assessing the validity of sources; and; decision making. So, if you are serious about improving your critical thinking skills or simply want to find out more about the subject, then this is the course for you.

This class will take place on QUB campus

OLE3482  An Introduction to Critical Thinking - Products - Queen's University Belfast Shop for OLE3482  An Introduction to Critical Thinking at https://qubuk.estore.flywire.com. Michael Kelly, BA, MA ...

https://qubuk.estore.flywire.com/products/OLE3470-How-do-we-Live-Together-in-a-World-of-Difference

OLE3470  How do we Live Together in a World of Difference?  - Products - Queen's University Belfast Shop for OLE3470  How do we Live Together in a World of Difference?  at https://qubuk.estore.flywire.com. Robin Wilson, BA, PhD