Access to computing for home-based students

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Abstract
A home computing policy was introduced by the Open University (OU) in 1988. Students registered to study specified courses are responsible for making arrangements for access to a microcomputer of a suitable specification (IBM compatible) as an essential part of their studies. Over 4,000 students enrolled on the three specified courses in 1988 and 11,000 enrolled on five courses in 1989. This is, then, the largest educational initiative in Europe using home-based computers. On the basis of evaluation data collected over two years, this paper discusses the impact of this initiative on students and a wide variety of OU staff, in particular the consequences for registered students in terms of their access to different parts of the institution's teaching system, e.g. additional help from central or regional staff to cope with the new demands of home computing. The paper suggests that differences in the student body that have always been significant in terms of access (particularly gender, income and geographical location) are magnified by the use of personal computers.

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