It was noted that in South Wales th

It was noted that in South Wales the number of students across the six colleges was around 100 in 1994/5. Given that there is little scope for rationalisation of the provision between colleges since travel would be prohibitive, it seems that economies of scale should be effected within the college. In the colleges it was admitted that there would be only one cohort of students in the room at a time, which seems to be wasteful, especially in view of the practice sessions required. There is therefore an opportunity to teach mixed groups in the same room. The student numbers may be enhanced by learners coming in for specific tuition or by teaching years one and two at the same time. Students in the latter stages of a course do not require continuous supervision so it would simulate the workplace better if they had a swipe card to record attendance and were required to produce work by a specific time. It may be argued that lecturers would be deskilled but it seems to the researcher that theywould be more likely to be multi-skilled since they would have a length of time when they would assist individuals with word processing, practical tasks or information technology. Once the lecturers were accustomed to this method of working, it might be more rewarding than guiding the whole class through the same examination paper at the same time.Shorthand classes would be changed after the theory base was mastered by the use of cassettes so that students would be able to work at their own pace. The work ethos would be evident not just through work experience but through real tasks and the use of a base for each student. As the environment changed from classroom to workplace, it would be easier to inculcate personal competencies in students. Staff who might be reluctant to leave the security of the traditional route, would devote less time to skills and so would be able to spend more time on tutorial support for the NVQ, or on the supervision of practical work. However, teaching hours would be freed and so students would have time to address the issue of their general education. If the skills mastery time were restricted, students might spend up to half their timetable on furthering their academic education.