Universal Wireless Access to Open Educational Resources

1. What do you see as the most critical challenges in skills development for a digital economy?
   We need EVERY educated person in Canada to be highly proficient in using digital media accessing information and making effective use of it using a wide variety of devices especially the latest mobile devices and tablets.
2. What is the best way to address these challenges?
   Education and training should be conducted by using digital media applications and devices, including the use of social networking tools, online educational resources and telecommunications — online learning should play a greater role in education and training.
3. What can we do to ensure that labour market entrants have digital skills?
   We need to develop ways of testing minimal digital competencies for students leaving our high schools, colleges, universities and other training centres.
4. What is the best way to ensure the current workforce gets the continuous up–skilling required to remain competitive in the digital economy? Are different tactics required for small and medium–sized enterprises versus large enterprises?
   The best way of training personnel in the needed digital economy skills is through actual use of digital tools and applications. This is called elearning. Large companies can operate their own databases of learning resources. Smaller companies should be able to have access to a wide range of applications and learning content on the "Cloud" — online repositories on the Internet accessible to any computer or mobile device from anywhere.
5. How will the digital economy affect the learning system in Canada? How we teach? How we learn?
   The digital economy must be integrated with the Canadian learning system. We cannot have a robust economy if our schools and other learning/training institutions are not participating. We do not need to support educational institutions that decide to be "educational Mennonites" rejecting the modern world.
6. What strategies could be employed to address the digital divide?
   The primary strategy is to ensure that ALL Canadians have open access to broadband wireless. Opening the wireless spectrum to all comers could be one way. But more importantly, we need to ensure that all reach a basic level of numeracy and literacy and digital literacy, so that they will have the ability to make effective use of the infrastructure that is available.
7. Should we set targets for our made–in–Canada digital strategy? And if so, what should those targets be?
   Some targets would be appropriate: 'Universal access to wireless broadband internet' Universal access to a wide range of open educational resources for learning and training
8. What should the timelines be to reach these targets?
   Do it now. We cannot wait.

Comments

dsampson — 2010–06–21 09:04:15 EDT wrote

This seems related to another post. It is as though each point should have been another idea. if I like some but not all the ideas I have no alternatives. Split them up next time.

I will of course vote for it.

dsampson — 2010–06–21 09:05:36 EDT wrote

Being able the extend initiatives like Canarie to all schools would be great (Canadian Network for the Advancement of Research, Industry and Education) or build another universal high perfomring educational network.