CANARIE funds two e-learning projects

CANARIE Inc has awarded $5.5 million to two e-learning projects managed by Netera Alliance, Alberta’s broadband research network organization. CANARIE will provide $4.25 million towards eduSource, a $9.4 million pan-Canadian forum for the development of learning object repositories. The repositories will contain on-line teaching materials for use by all levels of the education system and tested on CA*net 4. Prototypes will then migrate to commercial networks. The second project — Rural Advanced Community of Learners (RACOL) — will receive $3.6 million, with $1.3 million coming from CANARIE, and the remainder from Alberta Infrastructure and Western Economic Diversification. RACOL aims to deliver a full range of on-line educational services to communities regardless of size of location. The project is led by the Univ of Alberta and focused on a rural school in Fort Vermilion. Also participating are: Banff Centre for the Arts, Sonic Design Inc, the Univ of Calgary, No