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This section examines whether the OLT objectives are still valid and relevant to the current situation by looking at whether there continues to be a need for a national program like the OLT to encourage the use of learning technologies.

Information collected from the document review, case studies, key informant interviews and surveys of project sponsors and partners supports the need for a national program that encourages the use of learning technologies to help develop new technical skills and upgrade old skill — particularly in smaller, isolated communities. The literature³ indicates that there continues to be a need for citizens to develop new technical skills and up-grade old skills to fully participate in the current economy. Also, technology is changing the way work is performed in broad segments of many traditional industries and creating new industries that require new skills.

In some communities there is sufficient population and institutional density to facilitate innovation.⁴ In others, however, the majority of the industrial development has been within narrow parameters such as primary resource extraction or processing sectors. Often single industry communities are remote from other population centres and have not developed the capacity for innovation beyond primary industries.⁵ Also, the citizens from single industry communities may not have the necessary technical skills to make a transition to employment in other industries or communities.⁶

Citizens who do not possess the required technical skills increasingly contribute to the Digital Divide.⁷ The challenge is to facilitate the development of processes and structures to allow equal access to learning technology for disadvantaged communities and disadvantaged individuals.⁸

The surveys and case studies indicated that barriers contributing to the Digital Divide include a lack of awareness/acceptance of learning technologies and lack of infrastructure, technology and funding. Key informants also cited lack of interest or attitudinal barriers as one of the four main factors contributing to the Digital Divide. Other factors cited by key informants included lack of infrastructure, lack of information sharing and low levels of technical literacy.

A major difficulty for smaller, isolated communities is distance from learning networks, creative initiatives and research. Also, the literature indicates that communities without the means to determine which information infrastructures and technologies are most worthwhile for them may waste a great deal of time, effort and money on less than productive activities and on technical dead-ends.

The literature and stakeholders confirmed that learning technology and community learning networks provide an important vehicle for implementing widespread learning opportunities. The literature also indicates that these learning networks can link local economic development strategies with community learning⁹ to facilitate human capital development.¹⁰ Representatives at the case study sites, the surveyed stakeholders and key informants also see a wide a variety of opportunities for the use of learning technologies in the development of community learning, including the use of learning technologies for the following purposes:

• Employment skills development and re-training;
• Small business education and e-commerce;
• Increased access to workplace training and health and safety training;
• Rural access to life-long learning;
• Teaching ESL and individuals with disabilities; and
• Providing links to community education.

The document review indicates that there are few Canadian programs funding OLT-related activities. The literature review indicated that the OLT is one of only two programs in Canada that links learning technologies with non-institutional learning, such as community or lifelong learning, while maintaining an overall program focus of skills development and training for innovation.¹¹ The other example of this type of programming is the TeleEducation website in New Brunswick, which provides 50,000 on-line courses.¹²

Although a variety of programs exist at the provincial level to support adult and community learning, those concerned with introducing technologies to facilitate learning are few in number and scope.¹³ Within Ontario, for example, funds available for community-based technology initiatives¹⁴ have primarily been aimed at linking community technology with local economic development, rather than with community or lifelong learning. Similarly, in Quebec, the primary focus for both extended education and technology enabled education has been the Télé-université de l'Université du Québec.¹⁵ However, the Quebec government has not made investments in enabling technologies for lifelong learning.¹⁶

Stakeholders feel that the OLT should continue to aim at closing the economic and social divide between those who have computer skills and those who do not. A recent study¹⁷ concluded that the Digital Divide in Canada has continued to close between 1996 and 2000. This finding, however, does not fully address the issue that a significant divide still remains in the use and access to information technologies between high and low income groups, between young and old, between urban and rural populations, and between those with higher levels of education compared to those with less education. When high and low income groups are compared, the Digital Divide continues to grow for the lowest income groups, albeit at a slower rate than in 1996.

Project sponsors, project partners and key informants considered the federal government to have an integral and diverse role in promoting learning and skills development using learning technologies. The role of the federal government is seen to include providing information, conducting needs assessment, and supporting research around the issue of the Digital Divide. With respect to specific program or project development, stakeholders considered the federal government to have a key role in:

• Facilitating infrastructure development and access;
• Developing and facilitating partnerships; and
• Providing financial assistance and funding.

Project partners (84%), project sponsors (86%) and non-funded project applicants (76%) strongly agreed that assisting in closing the economic and social divide between people who have computer skills and Internet access and those who do not is an appropriate objective for the OLT.

Key informants also agreed that the OLT should continue to work at closing the Digital Divide, particularly because there is no other federal government initiative or activity to address this issue. Many of the key informants also noted that the Digital Divide should be addressed through collaboration and partnership between all levels of government, community organizations, the educational system and the private sector. OLT was seen to serve in the role of "catalyst" between HRDC, Industry Canada and the provincial governments — through providing information and enhancing capacity to mobilize engagement.

Through continued support of the OLT, stakeholders also feel the federal government has an important role as part of the national skills engagement process in disseminating information on best practices and acting as a data warehouse for learning technologies (i.e. a type of information brokerage role).

Footnotes

3	Literature Review: The Use of Learning Technologies in Canada, written for the Summative Evaluation of the Office of Learning Technologies Program, Michael Gurstein.
4	Porter, Michael E. (1990) The Competitive Advantage of Nations. London: Macmillan.
5	Literature Review: The Use of Learning Technologies in Canada, written for the Summative Evaluation of the Office of Learning Technologies Program, Michael Gurstein.
6	Cape Breton County Stakeholders Assembly on the Economy, (1998), Report on Deliberations: Suggested Framework for a Cooperative Action Plan on the Acute Economic Challenges of Cape Breton County.
7	The refers to the economic and social divide between those who have computer skills and those who do not.
8	Literature Review: The Use of Learning Technologies in Canada, written for the Summative Evaluation of the Office of Learning Technologies Program, Michael Gurstein.
9	Gurstein op.cit. http://olt-bta.hrdc.gc.ca/CLN/whatsnew_e.html, Canada.
10	http://www.worldbank.org/poverty/scapital/index.htm
11	Literature Review: The Use of Learning Technologies in Canada, written for the Summative Evaluation of the Office of Learning Technologies Program, Michael Gurstein.
12	http://courses.telecampus.edu/subjects/index.cfm
13	Literature Review: The Use of Learning Technologies in Canada, written for the Summative Evaluation of the Office of Learning Technologies Program, Michael Gurstein.
14	http://www.est.gov.on.ca/english/fp/fund_aindex.html
15	http://www.teluq.uquebec.ca/webteluq/index.html
16	Literature Review: The Use of Learning Technologies in Canada, written for the Summative Evaluation of the Office of Learning Technologies Program, Michael Gurstein.
17	The Digital Divide in Canada, George Sciadas, Statistics Canada, Catalogue no. 56F0009XIE, 2002.