I understand that Exercises 2 and 3 of Worksheet 5 were more difficult
than I anticipated and made the worksheet harder than the previous one
although it should have been easier. I heard that one student said
that he needed 6 hours for Exercise 2. Let me add that this is not out
of line with my expectation. Programming is a time consuming - at
times very frustrating and at times very rewarding - activity.

Nothing can be done with respect to the difficulty of the advanced
exercises, I am afraid. In order to work at the level of "distinction/first class"
matters have to be difficult/hard/challenging. My expectation has always
been that only a minority can work at this level. If now a majority on
this module actually accomplishes this, then this is a great achievement,
and I can only congratulate those. Keep it up! Keep trying the advanced
questions, but don't be surprised that they are difficult.

The top up tutorials offer help to those who struggle considerably,
for instance, have basic misunderstandings. We have a firm commitment
that no one who tries hard is left behind in this module. If you feel
you need extra support, talk to your tutor. If in the discussion the
need for extra support is confirmed then he or she will forward your
name to Vivek. If you are unhappy about the decision of your tutor
talk to me.

Furthermore I will try harder to spend the 2nd hours on Fridays on
answering your questions (also on questions to the exercises) and not
to present any new material. Please have your questions ready.

I very much appreciate the feedback you gave and hope that my/our
response is adequate. If you feel it is not, or have other
constructive suggestions, do not hesitate to let us know. Only if we
know we can improve.

Best
Manfred