Online Learning News - May 4, 2022

Free Contact North | Contact Nord Webinar

Micro-Credentials, Microlearning and Canada’s Skills Agenda 

Tuesday, May 31, 2022

1:00 p.m. - 2:00 p.m. (Eastern Time)

Register Now!

75% of Canadian employers say they cannot find the employees they need with the skills they require for available jobs. Despite high levels of youth employment, there are still some 50,000+ jobs each month that remained unfilled.

Our Host, Stephen Murgatroyd, Contact North | Contact Nord’s Chief Innovation Officer, explores the possibilities and potential of micro-learning and micro-credentials linked to competencies as a way forward for Canada’s skills agenda. 

Key Takeaways:

• What the skills challenge really is – the six skills gaps we need to close.
• What microlearning looks like and why it may be helpful if linked to competency assessments and learning profiles.
• Where micro-credentials could “fit” into a skills development system.
• What MOOC providers and firms are offering their own products and services in the skills space.
• What the future may look like for competency-based hiring, assessment and gap-based learning.

Beyond the Basics:
Helping You Teach More Effectively
with Zoom’s Advanced Tools

You have mastered the basic features of teaching on Zoom, so now what?

Beyond the Basics is live training geared specifically to educators and trainers like you. Led by Contact North | Contact Nord’s e-Learning Training Facilitator, our FREE session will help you boost engagement and accessibility for all types of learners:

• Enable live transcriptions for added accessibility
• Use PowerPoint as a virtual background, as a more immersive way to present
• Use focus mode to help learners avoid distractions by only seeing the host's webcam
• Use immersive view for creative discussions
• Set up and use exit surveys for all types of feedback
• Set up advanced polling and quizzes for instant engagement

Register now for a one-hour live FREE training session!

Open Educational Resources
Three Things to Stop, Improve and Start!

Open Educational Resources (OER) are a win-win for everyone in higher education. In the fifth instalment of Stop, Improve, Start, Contact North | Contact Nord looks at what faculty, instructors and education & training providers need to do to make the most of a multitude of resources.

Read the Full Story

Dr. Tony Bates’ Blog:
Online Learning and Distance Education

In this blog post, Dr. Bates reviews a report out of Oakland, California to reduce the digital divide for online learning.

Read Contact North I Contact Nord Research Associate Dr. Tony Bates’ blog post:

Bridging the digital divide in online learning

Leaders & Legends of Online Learning

Dr. Mark Nichols’ Podcast

Leaders & Legends of Online Learning is a podcast that brings first-person perspectives from online learning experts that inform and inspire. Each interview lasts about 30 minutes, and links to each guest's work and profile.

In this episode, Dr. Mark Nichols interviews Professor Albert Sangrà, from the Universitat Oberta de Catalunya in Barcelona. 

This Week’s Must-Read Book
on Online Learning

Nothing Less than Great:
Reforming Canada’s Universities

By Harvey P. Weingarten (2021)

Harvey Weingarten was a university president and later led the Higher Education Quality Council of Ontario. He knows of what he writes, which is why there is a need for universities to change. Like most of the current crop of “the university is broken” books, his diagnosis is similar to most others – vision and mission drift, reduced government funding, challenging management and the growth of accountability coupled with a reduced role for faculty.  Full of specific, focused recommendations, the book is an insider view of what’s wrong and outsider view of what is possible. Well worth a look.

Browse all Must-Read Books

Explore the Largest Searchable Directory of Vendors of Online Learning Products and Services Worldwide!

With over 3,200 vendors of online learning products and services worldwide, this searchable directory provides colleges, universities, training providers, faculty and instructors with information on how to find the latest products and services to help improve the learning experience for their students.

These vendors offer products and services ranging from software to hosting and organizing learning content to adaptive learning systems that use intelligent algorithms to adjust learning to suit individual needs.

Explore Contact North I Contact Nord’s
Searchable Directory

Upcoming Events in Online Learning

EDUCAUSE Annual Conference

Call for Proposals

Tuesday, October 25 – Friday, October 28, 2022 
Denver, CO | Online

This premier higher ed IT event brings together professionals and technology providers from around the world to discuss their discoveries, grow professionally, and explore solutions to continuing challenges.

For More Information

About Contact North | Contact Nord

As Ontario's community-based bilingual distance education and training network, Contact North | Contact Nord helps underserved residents in 1,300 small, rural, remote, Indigenous and Francophone communities access education and training without leaving their communities.

Visit contactnorth.ca for more information

Most Popular Resources on teachonline.ca

1. A New Pedagogy Is Emerging... and Online Learning Is a Key Contributing Factor 
2. Ten Facts You Need to Know About Micro-Credentials
3. Searchable Directory of 1,700 Upcoming Education and Technology Conferences From Around the World 
4. COVID-19 and the Impact on Online Learning
5. How to Enhance, Extend and Even Transform Your Teaching with Hyper-Engaging Strategies