Cost of initial development of PLATO instruction in veterinary medicine.

The cost of initial development of PLATO instruction during a 4-year period was $483,266. Of this amount, $220,765 were for equipment or renovation. The cost of lesson development for the entire 4 years averaged about $828 per hour of instruction. If 86 students used the lessons in each class at a maximum rate, over a 5-year period the cost per student-contact hour averages $1.93. With experience this figure should be reduced substantially. The median time required for an individual to program an hour of instruction for the entire 4 years was approximately 77 hours; however, under certain conditions a programmer may require as little as 36 1/2 hours. Programmer efficiency is based on a number of factors such as the quality and complexity of the lessons, experience of the programmer, and his knowledge of the subject matter. The University of Illinois College of Veterinary Medicine PLATO project has been developmental. The expense of continuing the project at this college or of initiating a similar project at another college should be much less as a result of this experience.