Keewatin-Patricia District School Board (KPDSB) ConnectEd is a unique program that provides increased course opportunities and equity of access to student programming. Some schools may not offer a course because of insufficient registration or interest. In this situation, one secondary school will offer the course and students in other schools will be able to register and participate from a distance. Other benefits of this type of programming include student participation in a learning experience they will likely encounter in postsecondary education, the acquisition of relevant educational skills and the ability to collaborate and learn with students across the system. ConnectEd also builds on independent learning skills, accommodates a range of learning styles and supports solving timetable conflicts students may encounter in their home schools.
A virtual meeting application such as Google Meet provides access to instruction, and a learning management system like Google Classroom is used to organize the course content, track student work and progress, provide continual access to learning materials and support the virtual social learning experience. Depending on the number of students participating, students from a school may work collaboratively in an assigned location or independently from a shared workspace like the school library.
ConnectEd programming continues to grow at KPDSB. In the 2021–2022 school year, there are fifteen synchronous Connected courses and three asynchronous (eLearning) ConnectEd courses scheduled. These are hosted by four secondary schools and include participating students from all six secondary schools (including students who selected remote learning for the first half of this school year).
