Book excerpt: To a greater extent than other students, open learners depend on the quality of their learning materials. If you are the teacher or trainer responsible for providing them, this task may be one of the most important aspects of your job. So what forms might your materials take? How might they best be obtained and developed? What needs to be done? This practical book guides you through all the key phases of planning and developing materials for open, distance or flexible learners. Each phase takes you through a sequence of development tasks supported by appropriate information, examples and checklists that the author has refined in numerous workshops and consultancies. By the time you have worked through the book, you should have completed and piloted the first draft of your learning package. Topics covered in detail include profiling your learners, agreeing aims and objectives, deciding content and sequence developing examples and activities, and making materials user-friendly