Background
Discussion Paper: Out-of-Province Online Learning Delivery by Alberta School Jurisdictions
Alberta has a world-class learning system: the quality of our learning programs and our leadership and innovation in education practices are achieving national and international recognition. The internationalization of our learning system assists Albertans to prepare for their role in the global marketplace and as global citizens. It also generates economic benefits for the province through the attraction of foreign students, highly skilled foreign workers and their families, and investment and trade in Alberta goods and services.
The primary role of Alberta school jurisdictions is to deliver learning programs to children and youth of Alberta (including resident learners originating from other provinces, territories and countries). Several Alberta school jurisdictions have expressed an interest in expanding this role to include out-of-province online learning1 delivery to non-Alberta learners2.
This interest includes entering into arrangements with non-Alberta governments and school authorities to deliver online programs and services to groups of learners residing in those jurisdictions, as well as online learning delivery to individual out-of-province learners. In addition to the Alberta Programs of Study, some school jurisdictions would like to deliver customized online courses (e.g. locally developed/acquired and authorized courses, English as a Second Language courses that are modified to address specific foreign jurisdiction needs, teacher professional development courses) to out-of-province learners.
Some may view the recruitment of non-Alberta online learners as an extension of authorized activities to recruit out-of-province learners to attend school in Alberta. However, the circumstances and dynamics of out-of-province online learning delivery differ in some important ways. For instance:
- the learners are not located in Alberta
- the teachers, computer servers, and support services required to deliver out-of-province online learning could potentially be located outside of Alberta
- some of the online courses and services that Alberta school jurisdictions may wish to deliver may be different than those that they provide to Alberta learners
- the ability to support and monitor learning delivery over the Internet may be limited.
These differences pose a number of jurisdictional, legal, and administrative challenges for Alberta's learning system. The proposed out-of-province online learning policy for school jurisdictions is intended to address these challenges. Section B of this paper invites your feedback on a number of proposals that would form the foundation of the proposed policy. It is anticipated that some of these proposals may require additional consultation at a later date to determine implementation approaches.
Notes:
1 For the purpose of this discussion, "online learning" involves the use of Internet-based technologies as a principal component in the delivery of distance learning. This may include instruction, access to learning resources, communication among learners and educators, and learning support. Online courses may incorporate other media (e.g. print, CD-ROM, teleconference, television, radio, audio/videocassette, DVD) to support learning activities.
2 In the context of this paper, "non-Alberta learners" or "out-of-province learners" refers to non-Albertans who reside in other provinces/territories and foreign students who reside outside of Canada.
The original questions for the response form are available in the PDF version of the discussion form.
