Last week our State of the Nation: K-12 e-Learning in Canada researchers posted this item to their blog.

The 2018 State of the Nation: K-12 E-Learning in Canada report has been submitted to the publisher and should be released sometime this month.  The English language version is also being translated into French, and that version should be released shortly after the English language version.

This report details the results of the eleventh annual State of the Nation: K-12 E-Learning in Canada study, which continues to be conducted in partnership with the Canadian eLearning Network (CANeLearn). As this is the first report following the tenth anniversary edition, the physical report has undergone significant changes. While the standard jurisdictional profiles (i.e., the annual update of activity and nature of governance for each province and territory, as well as for First Nations, Metis and Inuit under federal jurisdiction) will continue to be released in full on the State of the Nation: K-12 E-Learning in Canada website, this report will only describe any changes that have occurred in relation to the governance and e-learning activity over the past year. Additionally, any brief issue papers and vignettes received are simply introduced or referred to in this report, but are presented on the website. The State of the Nation: K-12 E-Learning in Canada website can be accessed at:

https://k12sotn.ca/

1.1 Methodology

The methodology utilized to collect the data for the annual study included:

• a survey that was sent to each of the Ministries of Education,
• follow-up interviews to clarify or expand on any of the responses contained in the survey,
• an analysis of documents from the Ministry of Education, often available in online format, and
• follow-up interviews with key stakeholders in many of the jurisdictions.

In addition to the data collection for the provincial, territorial, and federal profiles, the researchers also undertook an individual program survey that was sent to contacts from all of the K-12 distance, online, and blended programs across Canada identified by the researchers. The survey was sent to all contacts on six occasions from May through October. The response rate by jurisdiction is provided in Table 1.

Table 1. Individual program survey responses

Data as of the time the printed report was submitted for publication (K-12 e-learning programs can update their information at any time).

The most recent responses that the State of the Nation: K-12 E-Learning in Canada researchers have received are included in the provincial, territorial and federal profiles located at http://k12sotn.ca/data/

A complete description of the methodology, including all of the instruments, is provided at https://k12sotn.ca/about/

1.2 How to Read This Document

The goal of the 2018 State of the Nation: K-12 E-Learning in Canada report is to provide an overview of the state of K-12 e-learning in Canada. K-12 e-learning is broadly defined to include all forms of K-12 distance and online learning, as well as blended learning that may occur within the context of a face-to-face setting. The 2018 State of the Nation: K-12 E-Learning in Canada report is different than previous reports. The report continues to begin with a brief description of new brief issue papers, followed by a national overview of K-12 distance, online, and blended learning in Canada.

As noted above, this report differs from traditional State of the Nation: K-12 E-Learning in Canada reports in that it does not provide a full discussion of the nature of regulation and level of activity for each provincial, territorial, and federal jurisdiction. Instead the profile in this report simply provides a brief update of any changes or new developments in each province, territory, and federally. The full jurisdictional profiles continue to be available at https://k12sotn.ca/data/

It is our goal that the State of the Nation: K-12 E-Learning in Canada annual published report will be a much shorter version of the updated changes that have occurred in each jurisdiction from the previous year. However, the online version of the State of the Nation: K-12 E-Learning in Canada will continue to be a more comprehensive resource for e-learning in each jurisdiction.