The work done during attendance time consists of activities that are difficult to teach through workbooks, such as hands-on information technology. The course also uses examinations of which are traditional in format while others, for example, are open-book examinations based on a project studied throughout the year. Members of staff who teach on the course are allocated time to cover individual support and class delivery, equivalent to two hours per week for the full semester, not just for the weeks when students are in attendance. In the first instance, tutors were required to design and develop materials without payment. Savings are made by providing loan copies of the booklets, which can be reused on return.
Most students do return the booklets, although some are lost in the process.
Textbooks are also lent, but students are charged if they fail to return these at the end of the course. Evaluation Student feedback, obtained both by systematic course evaluation and anecdotally confirms that students for the most part enjoy the mode of course delivery. These students are studying effectively in their own time and often at their own cost, and therefore tend to be very committed. Although some get by with minimal effort, most put lots of effort into the work, and equally want plenty of reward in terms of feedback and comment from staff. Students informally compare the mode of delivery favourably to what they have experienced on other part-time courses they have undertaken.