Developing a Learner Support Model for Your Context

Questionnaire #2 - Planning Learner Support for Your Institution

	Once you have developed your case study, you can start developing an appropriate model of   support for your learners.  Use the questions below and the information from your case study to identify the goals for learner support at CCRTVU and what teaching methods, services, and technologies will best help you meet these goals with current and anticipated resources.  Give attention to your highest priority for learner support (areas of greatest need) and the rationale for your decisions.  You will also need to address economics, quality assurance and measures of success.  At the end, if you have time, you can discuss possible directions for future and what will determine these.  

	As you work through this questionnaire, you might try assuming different roles or at least thinking about your model from different perspectives (e.g. registrar, instructional designer, dean, faculty member, senior administrator, advisor in a regional office, student).

1.  What are the overall goals of the learner support system at CCRTVU? (e.g. student retention, improvement of the learner experience, incorporation of new technologies that improve quality or efficiency, inclusion of more diverse learners, other?)  How well is the current system of learner support meeting these goals?  Are there unmet needs?  Would you recommend some changes? 

2.  If you are recommending some changes or areas of growth to the current learner support model, what are the most important elements of your proposal in the short term (next one to two years)?  Identify specific services such as teaching, library, technical support, advising, counselling, automated registration, prior learning assessment that need to be added or changed.

3.  What are the implications of your recommendations for staffing?  Do you need more and/or different types of staff to carry out your goals?  Do you need to make any changes to the organizational structure (including staff locations)?  Describe any recommended changes.

4.  What new staff skills are necessary?  What staff training and development will you need in order for your learner support proposal to be successful?

5.  What new technologies or new uses of existing technologies are needed?

6.  What are the budget implications for your plan and how can calculate these using a distance education costing model?

*********** ***************
6.1	Summarize the basic parameters of what you want to do: level of program (e.g. academic credits), student workload, media choice etc.

6.2	List all the 'ingredients' of all the direct teaching costs needed for your program (most importantly course development and course presentation), specify the amount and the unit costs; this includes:

6.3	Production of various course materials (printed study guides; other media; CBT or online tools)

6.4	Specify as far as possible the amout it takes to prepare the items (academic development time; professional production time); keep in mind the student workload (nominal studen learning hours)

6.5	Classify the items in your list according to the relevant cost categories such as fixed/variable and capital/ recurrent

6.6	Calculate overheads as percentage of development costs (at least 25%); pssibly add internal charges for library, server costs etc.

6.7	Specify the various support measures related to teaching: f2f seminars (including frequency and group size), number of assessments; in case of online courses: academic time spent on 'dynamic content' (online discussions)

6.8	You may estimate different assignments of student time (e.g. using the Laurillard conversational model) and estimate the implications of required academic/professional time according to each scenario

6.9	Choose your scenario based on afforability and estimated educational effectiveness

6.10	If you will charge fees set preliminary fees; check if per student income exceeds unit costs

6.11	Set a preliminary shelf life of your course, specify the number of learners you may expect per year 

6.12	Decide if it makes sense in your context to annualize costs (e.g. price in the cost of lost interest of the money tied up as fixed costs of course development 

6.13	Ringfence some resources for course maintenance during the course's shelf life

6.14	Calculate the total costs and the income function based on expected fees and/or grants per student 

6.15	Check if there is a break evenpoint; calculate it; if there is no break even point revisit the fees

6.16	Calculate the average costs over the shelf life of the course; depict the graph; check if there is further potential for economies of scale 

6.17	You may look at cost to student (including fees; internet access; additional material)

7.  How will you raise the needed revenues or modify your budget to carry out your plan?

8.  Describe the rationale for your recommended course of action.

9.  How you will evaluate whether your learner support services are meeting stated goals?  Describe your methods of evaluation and measures of success?

8.  What are your priorities for learner support for the future (next 5-6 years) and why?

END OF QUESTIONNAIRE #2