The Teacher - June 2001

ISSN 1480-2611

What's behind the Advanced Studies Program?

The Department of Education recently announced, in somewhat breathless language, a new Advanced Studies Program, to be implemented across the province beginning in September. In a news release, absolutely crammed with the very latest information technology (IT) jargon and hype, the program is described as "an innovative Web-based, hands-on learning program that will make the province a world leader in high-school education." The program will consist of eight "collaborative problem-based learning (CPBL)" multi-disciplinary modules, and will enable students to complete Grades 11 and 12 in two years, and at the same time acquire advanced standing or credit transfers at Dalhousie University--depending on their achievement as measured on a series of exams, research projects or other assessment instruments to be developed by Dalhousie.

The NSTU has numerous questions and concerns about this program, not the least of which is why it was developed in utmost secret among the three partners -- the Department of Education, Dalhousie University and Knowledge House -- with no consultation or involvement of the NSTU. We are particularly uneasy about the role of Knowledge House, a self-described "growing provider of learning, performance support and information technology solutions for education, corporate and government markets." We have, in fact, been tracking the intrusion of Knowledge House into Nova Scotia's "education market" (i.e. public school system) for some time now, and find much of what we have seen so far very troubling. This program appears to increase the private company's role in the design and delivery of public school programming to an alarming degree.

The Minister of Education, who doesn't like being asked questions on this subject, compares the role of Knowledge House to a textbook provider. We see it as being much bigger than that. The company has essentially sold a program to the Department which incorporates their model of learning and methodology (CPBL), their content, and their software (operating on hardware, by the way, provided and maintained by Knowledge House through the federally-funded Information Economy Initiative, which also happens to be the primary source of funding for the Advanced Studies Program). This raises profound questions concerning teacher autonomy, professionalism, intellectual property rights and accountability, as well as more general questions about costs, equity and the appropriate role for technology in education. Then there are more specific questions, such as why the contract for the Advanced Studies Program was not tendered, when at least one other Nova Scotia company claims it too could have provided the software required. Whether the Minister likes it or not, we will continue to raise these questions, and demand answers.

Our ultimate questions center around the question of what is best for the students. The Department's news release takes it as a given that the uniqueness of the program proves its superiority, and that because it is Web-based, hands-on (hands-on what, a keyboard?), uses internet technology and email, students will ipso facto "be much better prepared to succeed at the post-secondary level and beyond". We would question that, considering the known limitations of "e-learning" and the notoriously high drop-out rate among those who take "on-line" courses. Certainly we would hope that the Department would be at least a little cautious about steering students, in their last two years of high school, into a "one of a kind" program whose merits are untested and untried. What will be the impact on those students if all the expectations and buildup turn out to be unjustified? Surely there should be some provision for evaluation of the program through independent and unbiased research.

And what is the ultimate question for Knowledge House? Earnings, of course. Knowledge House is one of hundreds of private companies world-wide who have identified the "education industry" as a huge untapped source of profits, and are determined to cash in. This program, with its IT jargon and hype, not to mention the promise of saving a year of university costs, is an easy sell to those not familiar with education and pedagogy. Obviously Knowledge House is hoping to use its success in Nova Scotia as a springboard into the world market. But what if the program turns out to be "not exactly as illustrated"? Knowledge House will simply take its profits and move on. No harm done--except to the students and public who got snookered!

As of this writing the NSTU is requesting an urgent meeting with the Minister of Education. In the space available for this column, I cannot begin to indicate the range of questions and issues that we have around the Advanced Studies Program. But I know that as the voice of the teaching profession, and a strong advocate for quality public education in this province, we have a responsibility to sound the alarm when we see the Department heading down a dangerous road. Hopefully the Minister can be made to see, albeit belatedly, that the question is not who runs the schools, but how she can consult and collaborate with professional educators to ensure the best for Nova Scotian students.