Learning Online

Today wraps up the second week of online delivery for the Introduction to Northern Government program for Nunavut Arctic College and the Municipal Training Organization. We asked instructor Michelle Turpin to tell us what it's like to work with students right across Nunavut - through the screen of her laptop in Ottawa.

“Remember when you were little,  and you wondered what you'd be when you grew up? Maybe a truck driver, or a carpenter- perhaps a radio announcer, or even a teacher?

I remember a class trip to a radio station, and all the cool technology (this was in the early 1980s,  folks - it seemed cool to my 12-year-old-self at the time!) When I had a chance to go on air, I was so excited I could barely find the words to announce the next song.

Fast forward 25 (or so) years. I'm not in radio but I find myself sitting in front of cool technology, talking to people from all across Nunavut. And it's even better than radio - they're talking back! And laughing, and joking, and learning."

So what makes this course special?

"We've got 19 students, people from every region -eager, interested and smart adults, learning from the comfort of their own workplaces and homes without having to leave their community or take a couple of weeks off work. It's an incredible opportunity for anyone working for Municipal Government, or in other government offices, who wishes they had time to take some courses."


Who's putting it on?

"It's a partnership between Nunavut Arctic College and the Municipal Training Organization. They'll be offering five core courses between December 2011 and March 2012. The classroom version of these courses have been running for about seven years now."

Where do you think this kind of training is going?

"It's the future of training in Nunavut.  I know I'll look back on this in another 25 or so years and say “Wow, I remember where online course delivery in Nunavut all started.” It is a great opportunity to bring people closer together, even when they're separated by thousands of miles. I look forward to continuing to help our students through these five courses in the upcoming months.”

One last question. Was this really an interview?

"Naw. I just wrote it that way because I've always wanted to be in radio."