RAP learners attend three contact sessions, known as workshops, during their studies. The aim of the workshops is to focus on skills development and not content, although content is used as a vehicle for developing skills. Workshops are particularly aimed at teaching students how to learn. Students who are going to succeed as distance learners need to be independent students, thus an important function of the workshops is to facilitate the process of the development of independent learners.

The workshops are not compulsory, but students are encouraged to attend. One of the facilitators said that attendance levels were very high, estimated at 99%, for students living in the surrounding areas. She said that students were very motivated, and did not want to miss anything. The ratio of tutor to student fluctuates from year to year but is approximately 1:35/40. Facilitators feel that the workshops are very important, and, although no empirical evidence has yet been compiled, the Head of RAP thinks that students who attend workshops perform better than those who do not.

The workshops introduce students to the materials, and orientate them to the course. Illustrations are used to show students how to use the text, and facilitators emphasize what skills students will need to develop. Workshop are also used to give students an opportunity to focus on exploring specific difficulties they have experienced. Finally, workshops are geared towards assisting students to prepare for the examination. The workshops are very flexible, and often tasks are changed to fit in with students' needs.

Functions of the workshops
All students interviewed said they find the workshops very useful, because:
•    workshops motivate them;
•    they like the class atmosphere and contact with other students;
•    they can see their performance relative to other students;
•    workshops familiarize them with readings;
•    workshops give them time to ask questions;
•    in workshops, they can hear problems and questions of other students;
•    they can meet other students;
•    workshops give them the opportunity to work in groups and discuss issues; and
•    workshops give them an opportunity to assess their own understanding.

Facilitators perceive the aim of workshops to be:
•    to provide face-to-face contact so that students meet the facilitators and do not feel that they are only dealing with paper;
•    to give students the chance to meet other students and not feel so isolated;
•    to provide a structure to the programme, thus giving it more meaning;
•    to encourage and motivate students;
•    to teach students how to learn independently;
•    to give students an opportunity to raise their own problems;
•    to give students an opportunity to work in groups; and
•    to help students to understand instructions as they speak English as a second or third language.

Non-attendance
Interviews suggest that the main reason for missing workshops is not because facilitators are perceived to be inadequate but rather because of work commitments and lack of money for transport

More workshops
Of all forms of support offered, students' preferred strategy of support was workshops, and they said they would be grateful for more workshops. Not surprisingly, as most of the students interviewed were at RAP to get entry into face-to-face institutions, students wanted more face-to-face teaching. This demand for face-to-face teaching is reinforced by students' prior experience of education, which is characterized by traditional learning methods. Most students have not been exposed to alternative models of education.

Much of the literature on distance education has argued that tutorials are a vital form of support if distance learners are to succeed. There are, however, those who maintain that an excellent teaching package is all that is needed and that student support services, especially of a face-to-face kind, are peripheral or even a watering down of the pure form of distance teaching. RAP has, however, recognized that face-to-face teaching plays an important part in learner support, although RAP staff members are concerned that face-to-face teaching increases the cost of the programme.

In addition to attending workshops, students may see the facilitators as often as they wish. They need to telephone to make an appointment and to indicate their area of difficulty. Facilitators believe that, if students want to come and see them, it is important that they identify their own problems.

Fourteen percent of the students interviewed said they had made use of one-to-one tutoring (either telephonically or face-to-face). These are seen as very useful, although the time that facilitators are available is problematic for students who work. Facilitators finish at 16:00 on weekdays and are not available on Saturdays.

RAP staff members feel that one-on-one contact is beneficial to students for the following reasons:
•    students can see you as a person not a leader;
•    students do not have to worry about looking stupid if they ask questions; and
•    students should feel like individuals, not like part of the mass production of undergraduate students.

In contrast to the views of the facilitators, students said they preferred workshops to one-to-one tutorials, as they benefited greatly from engaging with other students and hearing their questions.

TELEPHONE TUTORING

Telephone tutoring forms part of the RAP learner support system. Telephone tutoring is not used to deliver course content, but rather to assist students to learn from materials, to resolve their difficulties, and to provide them with access to a tutor. In some instances, the telephone may provide the only means of immediate or direct contact.

Students who cannot come to the RAP office are able to phone facilitators during the course of their studies. This does, however, have some limitations. First, many students, particularly those in rural areas, do not have telephones at home, and therefore must rely on telephones based in nearby towns. Second, the telephone call costs money, which students may not have.1 Third, the queues are usually long, therefore students cannot speak for as long as may be necessary. In relation to telephone tutoring, a further weakness is that the tutor cannot see the student's assignment.

Although generally the telephone is user-friendly, in that it is a familiar technology, it may require some adaptation in behaviour in communicating without visual cues. Students said that they found it difficult to ask questions on the telephone and felt freer to ask questions in person. Students preferred face-to-face meetings with tutors rather than telephonic contact. In some cases, however, the telephone may be the only link between the facilitator and the students.

Although students who cannot get to the RAP office and who do not have access to a telephone are encouraged to write letters to facilitators, this happens seldom. This may be because some students experience difficulty with writing down their problems, or because the time-lapse between sending the letter and getting a response may be too long. Students are also afraid of the possibility that letters will be lost.

Judging from what students say, RAP is certainly serious about learner support. This fledging programme has a useful model of support, which spans a broad range of areas, and which, despite some problems, functions well due to its team of enthusiastic and committed staff.