Distance education in Nunavut: 5 things to know
Jane Sponagle | CBC News | Posted: June 25, 2015 9:40 PM | Last Updated: June 25, 2015
Nunavut's ADM of education runs through must-knows about Nunavut's education system
Earlier this week, a parent in Arviat raised concerns about the possibility that her daughter would have to take academic courses by correspondence. That's because this fall, John Arnalukjuak High School is not offering biology or chemistry for students who want to be ready for university.
To find out more about how correspondence courses work in Nunavut, CBC spoke with John MacDonald, the territory's assistant deputy minister of education.
1. Each school is different
Even though there will not be biology, chemistry or physics this year in Arviat, there will be some academic — or post-secondary preparatory classes — this fall.
According to the Secondary School Intended Program submitted by staff at Arviat's John Arnalukjuak High School to the department, there will be academic English, math and general science for Grade 12 students for the fall semester.
In an email to CBC, MacDonald shared a response from John Arnalukjuak's principal Judy Connor:
"The decision to change how we offer these academic Grade 12 math and science classes was made because we have only a very few students who will require those courses next year. This year, we had three students in those four programs and next year there are only probably four students who might have the marks and the need or desire to take pre-calculus math, Physics 12, Chemistry 12, or Biology 12."
Which classes are offered, said MacDonald, can vary from school to school.
"The reality is if you're looking at a small community, is it wise for us to allocate a teacher, a classroom, all the other resources that go with it to offer a Grade 12 biology course, for example? When you only have one or two students needing it?"
2. Now's the time to talk about distance courses for next fall
MacDonald says that if you're not happy with courses offered at your high school, you should speak to school staff or a superintendent, and that if a group of students and a group of parents say they want to be challenged, it's not too late. More courses could be offered from January to the spring.
General science courses are accepted by some institutions and some programs as university preparatory, "but if you're looking at a certain program or a certain institution," says MacDonald, "you may need a biology. That's why that conversation has to happen this time of year."
In an email to CBC, MacDonald says Connor plans to meet with parents of Arviat's Grade 11 students "who may be impacted by this change and to work with the guidance counsellor to develop an outline of what they would like or need. They will look at options, such as registration in distance courses, which would be monitored and supported by our school staff."
3. Students have to be ready to learn independently
MacDonald admits correspondence tends to happen more in larger centres like Iqaluit, Rankin Inlet, and Cambridge Bay.
"One of the reasons why some of those larger centres would be accessing some of those distance courses is because the students are prepared, they're ready and they're ready to accept those challenges and to seek them out," says MacDonald.
According to MacDonald, there is a bottleneck when students hit Grade 10 and they're not ready for the credit system.
"That's a problem," he says, "because if you have students hitting Grade 10 and they're not ready for the academic challenges, then they're certainly not going to be ready to be a self-directed learner or to work in a distance modality. That's a huge issue.
"The real solution is not an easy one. The real solution is, all through the system, preparing students better from K to 9."
4. The future of distance education is still far away
Currently, Nunavut uses the Alberta distance learning centre for its distance education, though MacDonald says the territory hopes to get to offer courses through their own distance learning network, with a goal of offering video conferencing at every school.
"Theoretically, you might be able to have a physics teacher or a biology teacher at Inuksuk High," says MacDonald, "and while they're perhaps teaching to a live class, there are distance students plugged in from other communities in the Qikiqtani region."
"That, to me, is a very efficient use of resources. It's being equitable. It's giving people opportunities they would not have."
But MacDonald says something like that is at a very early stage and could be one to two years away.
5. Upgrading is still common
Even with the extra opportunities available by correspondence, MacDonald says that high school graduates taking upgrading courses at Nunavut Arctic College is "a fairly regular occurrence," though he was unable to provide exact figures.
"I'm not satisfied with that," he says. "I'm not happy about it. Every day, almost everybody in this department works to mitigate that."