SR&A Ltd Blended Learning Programmes
Course Terms, Tips, and not so Small Print
Scope.
These terms cover our Blended Learning training programmes including: Quintax Qualification Course, Quintax Conversion Course, British Psychological Society (BPS) Test User Ability (TUA) Course (includes Assistant Test User or ATU course), BPS Test User Personality (TUP) Course, and BPS Quintax as an Additional Instrument Course. See our Quintax and BPS training pages on our ‘How Can I Use Quintax?’ menu for details of these courses. These terms also cover our booking arrangements for In-person Support Sessions in which intensive 3 hour sessions can be booked so that one of our Chartered Psychologist trainers can take delegates through specific topics of choice face-to-face. In the following, ‘participant’, ‘delegate’, and ‘course member’ are all used equivalently to describe people who register to complete (either as individual learners or in groups) one or more of our Blended Learning courses. ‘SR&A Ltd’, where used, stands for Stuart Robertson & Associates Ltd. Blended learning is a term we use to describe a training course with e-learning modules (comprising text, graphical, and video elements) supported by video conferencing (VC) tutorial sessions typically run over Zoom, and, where booked, optional In-person Support Sessions. Our e-learning modules (‘Units’) are supported by the TalentLMS platform.
Course members may register to train on our courses and pay for themselves, or they may be registered and sponsored by employing, or other, organisations.
Booking and Registration.
Intending delegates or delegate sponsors may book places on our courses by communicating with our course administration at mail@sr-associates.com or via our Contact Us page to make the necessary arrangements. Bookings may be for individuals or groups. Individual bookings may also be made via our course booking form. For any person or group the ‘registration date’ is the date on which delegates are given and informed of their log-in credentials on our learning platform. In what follows the ‘registration date’ is the same as the ‘effective start date’ for the delegate’s course programme. The desired registration date for a delegate or group should be decided and agreed between participants and SR&A Ltd at the time a booking is made.
Completion Time and Pace of Learning.
Delegates are free to work through their courses at their own pace, but we expect that most course participants should be able to complete within 6 months of being registered on a course. In some cases, e.g. if a participant is completing our Assistant Test User (ATU) course, they should be able to finish more quickly. The Course Guide relevant to a particular programme will make it clear how long a course is expected to take the majority of participants to complete. Of course, people do vary in the time they take over a course, but participants should consult with their SR&A tutor if circumstances make completion of the course in the expected time practically difficult to achieve, or if they need a break from the course for any reason. Units can take typically anything between 5 and 40 minutes, with content units usually taking less time than assignments. Our courses can be completed in a much shorter periods if delegates have the time available and decide to do it that way!
Training and registration are time-limited!
Notwithstanding the above expectations, the maximum time limit for registration on all our blended learning courses is 1 year. This applies unless very exceptional circumstances arise. If a participant has not completed the course by this time, and there are no other agreements in place, for example regarding the de-activation of the participant’s account as described below, then their registration will be closed.
De-activation of a participant’s account.
There may be occasions when a participant might need to pause his or her learning on the course because of illness, work pressures, or other reasons. If their tutor agrees, we can de-activate their account on one or more occasions. De-activation will ensure that their coursework and records remain intact, but they will not be able to access them during the de-activation period. An aggregate period of up to 3 months in total is allowed for de-activation(s), and in each case the participant must notify their tutor when they want their account to be re-activated. If the aggregated periods of de-activation reach 3 months in total, then the account will be re-activated. Any period(s) of de-activation will then be added as an extension to the maximum time limit for registration. For clarity, the maximum time limit for registration may not be extended more than three months beyond the original 1 year available.
Option for Re-registration.
If a participant does not complete the course within the maximum time limit (including any extension owing to a period of de-activation) their registration will be closed. If they wish to do so they can re-register and try again, but only based upon a fresh course booking and course fee. If the participant does re-register, the decision as to whether any of their prior assignment work may be carried over into the new registration will be made with and at the discretion of the SR&A course tutor. The decision will be based upon whether their re-registration has occurred within a reasonable time, to allow continuity of learning.
Payments.
Payment for a course place(s) is due on invoice two weeks before the effective start date of a programme. Course place bookings may be withdrawn or cancelled without penalty if the withdrawal or cancellation occurs two weeks or more before the effective start date. Bookings withdrawn or cancelled within two weeks of the effective start date of a programme incur a full charge for the relevant course places.
Refunds.
We do not offer refunds where participants do not finish the course. If a person is booked on to a course but subsequently cannot register we are happy to agree a delegate substitution or a short delay in registration of up to 1 month as an alternative to losing the course place. If a substitution is needed after a person has been registered (but prior to them engaging with our content and/or our tutorial support) an administration charge will be payable for the changes. This charge will be 10% of the relevant course fee. If a person withdraws who has been registered and has already started to engage with our content and/or tutorial support, no refund will be offered and a full charge for the course place will apply. If a person is unable to finish the course due to a serious illness, we will endeavour to negotiate a return to the programme in good faith where practically possible. Depending on the circumstances, additional charges may be made to facilitate any further support needed.
Intellectual Property (IP) restrictions.
It is important to recognise that the e-learning Unit content, Course Workbooks, and other supporting materials making up our training are all part of the intellectual property controlled by the publishers, Stuart Robertson & Associates Ltd. These works may not be copied from the Learning Management System (LMS) into any medium or mechanical/digital device or form without the specific direction or agreement of the publishers. In relation to the course modules, this does not prevent participants from summarising, making notes, or utilising short extracts as attributed quotations in their written work for the course – these activities are normal and extremely helpful to participants as learners and can only help to reinforce their learning. However, it does exclude them from making full copies of the course material or its sections, and from copying and/or circulating any content from the LMS or Course Workbooks – including any answers they provide to specific assignments and questions – to third parties, including other learners.
Other – Information and Tips for Delegates
Delegate Progress reports.
In some situations, where an organisation has arranged or sponsored a participant’s training, the organisation may expect or request occasional reports on the participant’s progress or stage of completion. It is our practice to comply with any reasonable requests made in this way. If we are asked to make such reports, we will provide information on the participant’s stage of completion and progress and we will share the request and information with the participant. By implication, if a participant registers on and joins a course they are signalling their agreement with this, and with the other conditions in this section. Participants may of course discuss the issue of progress reports with their organisation (if appropriate) to determine or agree how or if they will be made.
Planning how to engage with the course.
In practical terms a good strategy for the participant is to actively plan their diary to include sessions where they can devote 2 to 3 hours at a time to the course. This brings rewards in terms of momentum and pace. It also increases the chances of the participant finishing quickly and achieving a coherent mastery of the course content.
Working with Others while Not Copying!
Delegates working in groups can gain value and enhanced learning by discussing aspects of the course with other learners. This can also apply to aspects of the assignments involved. However, even if delegates discuss assignments with colleagues we expect them to write-up their answers as individuals. Any evidence of copying the work of others, or of allowing one’s work to be copied, will disqualify a completed assignment from the assessment process. Delegates will then need to resubmit their work on an individual basis. Suspension from the course may occur if copying is found on a repeated basis.
Keep at it!
Just as we would not expect course members to take up space indefinitely in a public training room without doing anything, we do expect participants to engage with the course and to make progress in a reasonable amount of time after having registered. Factors such as ill-health can always affect this, so we encourage all participants to seek help from your tutor over timing issues should such problems arise.
Stuart Robertson & Associates Ltd 2023