Subsequent to the review of CM described above, the content and delivery of the subject
was redeveloped with the primary aim of encouraging students to participate more
actively in their learning, and, in doing so, address the three problems identified above.
The hour-long workshops were replaced by a series of on-line preparation exercises to support
a revamped tutorial program. This on-line preparation was enabled through the setup
and development of the MarlinaLS system which comprises three modules. The most
significant is the first module which consists primarily of short answer, narrative-type
questions and longer, interactive style questions (ISQs). Prior to their tutorial, students
were required to attempt pre-selected questions of both types, ranging from the simple
to the complex. With the simpler questions, students receive necessary information and
at each step are provided with ‘‘hints’’ relative to the data they have entered. On completion,
students are provided with a model against which to compare their answer.