Saskatchewan Institute of Applied Science and Technology: Connecting Learners and Teachers Across Canada
With little more than 1 million residents, Canada’s Saskatchewan province
spans 250,900 square miles, about four times the size of New York State. In
such a sparsely populated area, distance learning has always been a fact of
life. For 41,000 students at the Saskatchewan Institute of Applied Science and
Technology (SIAST), which provides 200 programs in agriculture, business, health,
industrial training, and technology skills, the tyranny of distance has now
been largely tamed.
After an initial pilot project involving online electrical apprenticeship training,
we launched our Virtual Campus last fall with 11 courses and two programs ranging
from new media to emergency medical services training. Almost immediately, we
were generating waitlists. Virtual course registrations for the year totaled
700, a response that augurs well for the 17 courses we will add this month and
the 21 more that will be under development.
We credit two key principles with our success: First, we supported our online
learning initiative for students with faculty and staff development by providing
a steady offering of workshops and seminars to employees through “technology
greenhouses” at each of our four campuses. Second, we established an integrated
online environment that enriches interaction between teachers and learners and
facilitates electronic communications and administrative services for employees.
For students, we use the term “connected learning” to denote electronic
access to administrative services, collaboration and communication services,
and instructional support. This environment brings value both to full-time,
on-campus students and to part-time students who never set foot in a physical
classroom. The same portal where this happens also brings employees and the
administration together electronically.
In order to be truly virtual, we require integration between our administrative
and academic content systems. We accomplished this through automatic, real-time
integration between SCT Banner, our administrative system, and WebCT’s
Web-based course tools and e-learning hub. Campus Pipeline provides a unified
online campus environment and visual integration of our e-learning and administrative
systems. As a result, we now have an enterprise wide solution with single sign-on
and real-time data synchronization. Synchronization ensures that user information
is always up to date. The integration also reduces the likelihood of error because
we are able to move information through a variety of sources without repeating
processes.
The connected learning system also enables instructors and students to integrate
technology into the teaching and learning process without having to know or
learn complex systems. For example, each SIAST course automatically provides
access to chat and discussion boards through Campus Pipeline, features that
are available to the instructor and students registered in every SIAST course.
Class lists are also automatically generated for instructors, allowing them
to e-mail an entire group. As a result, both off-campus and on-campus students
can work together in an educational community.
Each student who registers at SIAST is given access to Campus Pipeline. WebCT
provides both on- and off-campus virtual students the opportunity to access
content anywhere, anytime, while the Banner applications integrate human resource
functions, finance, and a variety of student information. Student and faculty
can access grades, class lists, and communications services while staff and
faculty maintain timesheets and monitor budgets online.
Having access with a single sign-on into administrative, e-learning, and communications
systems speeds access to services and information for all users. Faculty, staff,
administrators, and students do not need to make multiple entries, bookmark
pages, or memorize URLs.
Also, having real time access to services 24 hours-a-day, seven days a week
is helping us meet increased student demands without compromising quality. It
is also reducing the contact time required to answer routine questions. Faculty
are as accessible as before, but an alternative method of communication is available
for those who cannot reach them during normal work hours. The solution enables
us to cater to off-campus and on-campus learners without compromising services
to either group.
The Virtual Campus allows us to integrate technology with learning, delivering
education and training in the style and format appropriate to a new generation
of learners. And it helps us remain competitive in the online educational arena.
Educational opportunities are just a click away, so it’s imperative that
Saskatchewan, through initiatives such as SIAST’s Virtual Campus, be part
of the e-learning landscape.