Distance Education for Kindergarten to Grade 12: A Canadian Perspective

Abstract

PCF1 // The perspective presented in this paper is one of an administrator responsible for delivering distance education programs to learners in the province of British Columbia, Canada. The issues identified will be discussed from this limited perspective. // The province of British Columbia is a vast land mass of 947,800 square kilometers and has a population of only 3,933,273 (1997 estimate). The majority of the population lives in a small region in the southwest of the province around the cities of Vancouver and Victoria. There are other pockets of population dotted around the province, but there are also many very small communities and individual families dotted over the many thousands of square kilometers. // The School Act of British Columbia allows a person access to educational programs, free of tuition, from age 5 (Kindergarten) until the person graduates from secondary school (Grade 12). This means that, while most students are between five and eighteen years old, adults are also permitted to access educational programs. Any adult resident may access programs if they wish to pay the tuition fee. // The School Act also allows parents to choose the appropriate educational opportunity for their children. Public schooling, independent schooling, distance education, and home schooling are all options for B.C. students. The government fully funds public schooling and distance education, partially supports independent schooling which is complemented by a tuition structure at the school, and provides a stipend to facilities registering home schoolers (Parents who independently home school receive no government subsidy). //