ICCAN

Winter 2010

Contents:

• How Training via VC Opened Door to New Relationships
• Central Alberta Pilot Project
• Literacy Tutor Training Pilot Program a First in Alberta
• Frequently Asked Questions about iCCAN
• Q & A with Jacqueline Hutton, Executive Director, Grande Prairie Volunteer Centre
• What People Are Saying about iCCAN

How Training via VC Opened Door to New Relationships

Grande Prairie connects to Board Development Program

Once a week, for four weeks in November/early December, eight people from several different non-profit organizations came together in Grande Prairie to learn about board governance for voluntary boards of directors. They were part of a larger group of people from across the province attending a workshops series via videoconference.

A common desire for learning brought the Grande Prairie citizens together, but the relationships they developed with one another over the course of each evening created powerful human connections that transcended the technology and course material.

"At the end of each session, people stayed and really got to know each other," says Jacqueline Hutton, Executive Director of the Grande Prairie Volunteer Centre.

"Partnerships were built within that room because it was such a small group working together, and people were reintroduced to one another every week. On the last Thursday we actually got a cake and people were kind of sad that the workshops were finished."

Networking

Jacqueline points out that while traditional workshops and courses tend to be conducted with larger groups, the VC sessions are smaller and more personal, which allows more networking and relationship-building to occur at the breaks and after the session. The VC suite in the Grande Prairie Volunteer Centre seats eight people.

"It brought together people who wouldn't have necessarily have come together otherwise," says Jacqueline. "We had Farmers Market and Grande Prairie Live Theatre and Immigrant Settlement Services, Sewing for Kids, and others … so not all were recreation or social services. We had people from Grande Prairie as well as from outlying communities such as Beaverlodge."

Positive feedback

The feedback received was extremely positive, with people saying that they found it easier to fit in a couple of hours every week versus dedicating a whole day for a workshop. They also appreciated getting the information in bite-sized pieces over a longer course of time.

Central Alberta Pilot Project:

Sharing resources to expand course offerings

A pilot project involving five Central Alberta community adult learning councils (CALCs), with support from iCCAN, is opening new avenues of collaboration and helping rural Alberta CALCs to expand their course offerings in a cost-effective manner.

CALCs in Stettler, Hanna, Killam, Rocky Mountain House and Innisfail each took responsibility for developing program content and arranging training for instructors. The first session (Creative Writing – What's Your Point?) was hosted by Stettler and involved 20 participants from the five communities.

The Henday Association for Lifelong Learning in Innisfail brought in well-known expert Dr. Scott Wooding for a session on bullying. Eight Steps to a Healthier You was hosted by Hanna.

"The community adult learning pilot was a great way to expose people to information that they otherwise would not have had," says Val Rathjen, Executive Director of the Flagstaff Community Adult Learning Council in Killam, whose site hosted the workshop Understanding Saving and Investing.

"For example, I don't have anyone local here that can teach creative writing," so having Stettler host this course allowed people from our community to benefit, without having to travel."

Val believes that sharing knowledge from different communities is what iCCAN is all about.

"It's not just bringing in an instructor from Edmonton or Calgary – it's taking a new look at your community and saying who are the people who can share their knowledge and expertise, because each community has its own experts. So that broadens what we are exposed to."

She says it's important that rural Alberta "celebrate" those experts and "acknowledge the fact that we have people of excellence" and that the expertise is shared with other communities.

"Videoconferencing is probably one of the only ways that's going to happen," she says.

iCCAN training critical piece

Stettler and District Community Adult Learning Council coordinator Bonnie Ireland, who initiated the pilot project, says that iCCAN's training program was a critical piece of the project's success.

"The training was delivered from Edmonton, but our instructor was able to take it via videoconference (VC) from the Literacy Alberta office in Calgary," says Bonnie. "She then modified her presentation accordingly – so it was appropriate for delivery by VC."

Bonnie believes that the decision to proceed with the pilot project motivated all five sites to ensure they were fully prepared as "site facilitators."

"The VC training from iCCAN staff has been very positive for everyone. It covered things we wouldn't have thought of, such as back-up procedures if we ran into problems." Bonnie estimates that each CALC coordinator took 8-10 hours of training – not including regular participation in Coffee Hour and Lunch and Learn sessions.

Val echoes the importance of the iCCAN vc training. "It has been essential and it takes the fear factor out of it," she says.

Good learning experience

Both Bonnie and Val agree that the Central Alberta pilot project was a good learning experience on what to consider when participating in programming delivered via VC.

Val says the sessions included a great combination of people who were more familiar with the technology and people who were using it for the first time. "Those of us who have been through it before can say – ‘relax – it's going to be ok when this happens … we'll do this together,' and it was actually a great learning experience for everyone."

Bonnie says the pilot project allowed coordinators to work through the technical issues, especially with so many participants.

"Until you experience it – it's all just theory," she says. "It's like watching a foreign film. Once you get used to the captions, you get more comfortable with it."

Literacy Tutor Training Pilot Program a First in Alberta

A first-in-Alberta approach to training adult literacy tutors is creating a new pathway to learning thanks to an iCCAN pilot project in partnership with Norquest College's Rural Roots program, Literacy Alberta, Community Learning Network, and the Slave Lake Community Reading Program. This past fall and in late 2009, the ESL for Literacy Learners workshops were delivered for the first time via VC to approximately 30 literacy coordinators, literacy tutors and their instructors in Brooks, Medicine Hat, Wetaskiwin, Vulcan, Slave Lake, Hanna, Edmonton, and Calgary.

Helping literacy tutors

Spearheaded by Slave Lake's Martha Urquhart, a Norquest College literacy coordinator and Rural Roots consultant, the project explored how VC tutor training could reach new literacy tutors as they join literacy programs in their area, without having to wait until a large group is assembled, and without tutors or trainers having to travel long distances and risk poor road conditions.

Training delivered from computer

Martha normally travels to communities around the province to deliver literacy training. In the iCCAN pilot project she delivered the tutor training from her desktop computer in Slave Lake, which iCCAN had equipped with desktop videoconference equipment.

She says the pilot showed the power of videoconferencing as a cost-efficient way for literacy coordinators to share resources for tutor training.

For example, if six coordinators partnered on training, each could be responsible for a training session every month over a half-year period.

"We could have six training sessions delivered by six different coordinators once a month," says Martha.

This approach would also see volunteer tutors benefiting from six different sessions, and the coordinators would have to plan only one session each.

Sharing resources

"When I go to a community to do face-to-face training, sometimes a couple of coordinators will join together to do training," says Martha. "I'll draw on the expertise in the room, so you get an exchange of expertise. With videoconferencing you broaden your borders even more, because you're able to access the expertise of more people."

VC is an unique way for literacy coordinators to share resources for tutor training. For example, if six coordinators partnered on training, each could be responsible for a training session every month over a half-year period.

"We could have six training sessions delivered by six different coordinators once a month," says Martha. This approach would also see volunteer tutors benefiting from six different sessions, and the coordinators would have to plan only one session each.

Heather Kazimir, literacy coordinator with Medicine Hat College's Adult Basic Literacy Education (ABLE) program in Brooks, says communities are changing all the time, and greater needs must be met with fewer resources.

"We have to be able to obtain the knowledge and experiences to provide the appropriate training to our educators, and with videoconferencing we can learn from communities that already have experience working with a certain group of people," says Heather.

"We can work together and share our knowledge, resources and experience within the province. And there is a lot less travel for people."

Charleen Schnick, Executive Director of the Community Learning Council of Wetaskiwin & Area attended the training with nine other people from her community.

"It was nice to not have to drive a long distance to get quality training," she says. "Training dollars are very tight, and this way offers the opportunity to everyone. It's also cost-effective and a real timesaver."

iCCAN expertise

iCCAN's technical expertise and professional training program ensured that program participants – learners, instructors and facilitators – were well equipped to use VC as a tool for acquiring and sharing knowledge. iCCAN also helped Martha develop resources on best practices.

Training from iCCAN is "very important," says Martha, and she especially enjoyed the Leadership Series with iCCAN Adult Education Manager Sarah Eaton, and the Content Provider training from iCCAN Training Coordinator Barb Hudkins.

She was also grateful for the technical back up provided by iCCAN. "I didn't have to worry about that. I just concentrated on the content and the delivery of it."

Tailored content

The ESL for Literacy Learners training is normally provided in a three-hour face-to-face workshop. For the VC sessions it was split up into two 90-minute workshops, which gave people a chance to get comfortable with the equipment in the first session so they could really concentrate on the content in the second session, says Martha.

Heather Kazimir, Literacy Coordinator for Medicine Hat College's Adult Basic Literacy Education (ABLE) program is based in Brooks, Alberta. She said that the second session was great because "we were able to give them (participants) more hands-on training."

Shirley Schrenk, an ABLE Literacy Coordinator who traveled with six other people from Medicine Hat to Brooks for the sessions, says she received very positive feedback from participants.

"We had two new volunteers with no training, and other participants with training and experience, and both groups found the session very beneficial," says Shirley. "The facilitator (Martha Urquhart) was excellent.

Shirley adds that "iCCAN plays a very beneficial role, because we don't have the staff or time to provide the training that is needed to continue these programs. I have many people on a waiting list for a tutor."Promotion and registrations were handled by each individual site, and each was also responsible for providing a site facilitator. The training provided by iCCAN ensured that site facilitators were able to fully engage their group of participants.

Frequently Asked Questions about iCCAN

Q:What is iCCAN?

A: iCCAN stands for Innovative Communities Connecting and Networking.

iCCAN is a not-for-profit provincial network of videoconferencing sites, led by a partnership of three organizations: Community Learning Network, Literacy Alberta, and Volunteer Alberta.

iCCAN facilitates unprecedented access to educational programming, training and professional development. It also enables collaboration/resource sharing among community adult learning and independent literacy organizations, volunteer centres, and other non-profit organizations.

Q:What services does iCCAN provide?

A: In addition to providing and installing videoconferencing equipment in community-based organizations across Alberta, iCCAN's team of experts provides full videoconferencing support services. From professional VC training for facilitators and course/workshop providers to coordinating VC events, inservices and collaborative projects the iCCAN team is a videoconferencing hub for community-based organizations. In addition, the iCCAN team offers "behind the scenes" technical support for VC sessions, content adaptation and modification, logistics coordination, VC leadership coaching and distribution of VC materials.

This expertise and coordination is critical to ensuring that simultaneous programming to multiple communities is provided as seamlessly as possible and that interaction among learners, and between learners and instructors, is properly facilitated.

Q: How does iCCAN help Albertans access learning opportunities?

A: iCCAN improves access to educational programming, training and professional development by:

Facilitating collaboration and the cost-effective sharing of resources among iCCAN participants by coordinating pilot projects related to adult learning, literacy training, , professional development and collaborative networking for the voluntary/non-profit sector. While one community may not have enough learners to make a course offering economically viable, organizations from different communities can join forces to make more course offerings feasible.

For example, five community adult learning councils in Stettler, Hanna, Killam, Rocky Mountain House, and Innisfail recently worked together to expand course offerings to the public. Each community had responsibility for organizing one workshop, which was then delivered by videoconference to participants in each of the five communities.

Establishing partnerships with post-secondary and training organizations and providing a link between iCCAN members and specific programs or courses.

For example, a series on Best Practices for Language Teaching is being broadcast to language teachers across the province through the iCCAN network thanks to a partnership with the University of Calgary's Learning Research Centre. This project is providing adults in rural communities with opportunities to join workshops and classes in real time and connect with scholars, practitioners and learners in a new way.

Delivering programming directly by securing education/training providers and coordinating the participation of iCCAN participants.

For example, a partnership with the Alberta Government's Board Development Program and Community Development branch of Culture and Community Spirit provided a series of workshops on board governance to volunteer board members of non-profit organizations across Alberta.

Q: How many communities are involved in the iCCAN project?

A: By April 2010 approximately 100 Alberta towns, cities, villages and hamlets will form the nucleus of the iCCAN family, with some communities having more than one site.

iCCAN's goal is that approximately 50 sites will have videoconference "classrooms" featuring LifeSize equipment, and approximately 110 sites will have desktop units that connect to laptop or desktop computers by March 31, 2010.

As of year-end 2009, the iCCAN community was <99 sites strong, with <38 LifeSize units installed and <61 desktop units.

Q: Are iCCAN sites connected to Alberta's SuperNet?

A: Although SuperNet connections are ideal for high-definition videoconferencing, only 20 per cent of iCCAN sites are directly connected to the Alberta SuperNet.

The remainder of sites are connected to the SuperNet through Internet Service Providers (ISPs) in their local communities, which serve as a kind of "on-ramp" to the SuperNet.

Q: Why aren't more sites connected to Alberta's SuperNet?

A: There are four main reasons for the lack of SuperNet connections.

1) The SuperNet is a Government of Alberta initiative, and all facilities slated for SuperNet connections must be on the Government of Alberta's list.

In some cases, buildings were never "wired" for SuperNet, as they are not on the Government of Alberta's SuperNet list. The Volunteer Alberta office in Edmonton is an example. The 26 volunteer centres across the province are not on the list either, nor are literacy associations.

2) Organizations on the Alberta Government's SuperNet list may have moved from a building that was wired for SuperNet to a new location that lacks a connection.

This is the case for some community adult learning councils (CALCs). The cost of getting a SuperNet connection is approximately $20,000, which is prohibitive for any non-profit organization.

3) There is conflicting information about whether or not an organization is on the Alberta Government's SuperNet list.

These organizations are wired for SuperNet but are being told that they not on the government's list, and therefore cannot access the infrastructure. For example, The Lifelong Learning Council of Red Deer has a SuperNet box in its facility, but it was never activated. Although the infrastructure is clearly in place, the council was told by SuperNet provider Axia that they are not on the list, and the cost to get connected would be $20,000.

4) The organization is on the Alberta Government's SuperNet list, the facility is wired for SuperNet, but the connection has not been activated.

In this case, the connection cost is $500, which is manageable for most organizations. This is the case for approximately 80 per cent of the iCCAN sites. iCCAN staff are helping these organizations get their SuperNet connections activated.

Q: What is the benefit of having all sites SuperNet connected?

A: Because SuperNet is a high-bandwidth, private network, users do not have to contend with competing traffic and congestion, which can occur on the Internet. These issues affect the quality of the videoconference connection in terms of crispness and clarity of image and can also cause network "hiccups" and delays.

For example, some participants may be dropped from a session due to a lost connection, or they may appear to "freeze" on the screen. This causes unnecessary disruptions that shift attention away from the learning and onto the technical issues, which negatively impacts the overall quality of the leaning experience.

Ideally, all sites will one day be connected to the SuperNet, which would vastly improve the quality and integrity of the connections.

Q: How does iCCAN compensate for the lack of SuperNet connections?

A: Videoconference sites that are SuperNet connected can communicate with one another, but bringing in a site that is not SuperNet connected requires a special kind of "bridge," because SuperNet is a closed environment.

iCCAN worked with Service Alberta to install a "proxy server" that allows SuperNet sites to connect to other sites by first dialing an outside extension – much like dialing the number nine on a telephone to get an outside line. This allows a SuperNet site to dial an Internet site.

However, even this compromise solution doesn't always work, due to a limited number of proxies that can be in use at one time. It's like too many people trying to make a phone call on Mother's day. The proxy server is also limited in that Internet sites cannot dial into SuperNet site (only SuperNet can call Internet).

A second, more reliable compromise solution is iCCAN's Virtual Private Network (VPN). It is the first widely-accessible network on the SuperNet to allow Internet videoconference sites and SuperNet videoconference sites to communicate with each other.

However, even this unique network of multiple sites that can "talk" to one another – either one-to-one or as part of a larger group of sites –is not 100 per cent reliable and requires a great deal of technical coordination by iCCAN staff.

Despite the technical issues, iCCAN continues to deliver programming and help learners, facilitators and instructors to get comfortable with the technology.

Q: How is iCCAN funded?

A: iCCAN received funding from the provincial government's Access to the Future Fund in 2008. This funding carries the project until March 31, 2010.

In addition, the senior leaders and staff of the three partner organizations – Community Learning Network, Literacy Alberta, and Volunteer Alberta – have invested a significant amount of time and expertise into the project over the past 20 months.

Q: What happens after March 31, 2010?

A: The iCCAN partners have heard from the project's participants that more work needs to be done to sustain the progress made to date.

The iCCAN partners have applied for funding from Alberta Agriculture to continue the project for another year, and a decision is expected in early 2010.

Q: Where do I get more information?

A: Visit the iCCAN website at www.iccan.ca or email us at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Q & A with Jacqueline Hutton, Executive Director, Grande Prairie Volunteer Centre

Q: How does iCCAN's VC make for better communication within your sector?

A: It gives us stronger connections within our sector – and with other volunteer centres, and it enhances the way we work.

When communicating by phone and email, something is missing. Videoconferencing is expediting that process of getting to know people because you can see their faces rather than trying to envision them. And that builds trust, which is needed to work on projects together. And when you call on a person they are more likely to share information.

For example, when I put out a question to the Volunteer Alberta volunteer centre network about salary grids, I received a response from someone who I then ran into a conference in Vancouver, so it's just a continuation of this relationship. It's just one more component.

Q: So VC enables better collaboration and resource sharing?

A: Yes. VC helps us share resources more efficiently and effectively.

We're always being told to share resources and to collaborate, and it is much better to do that with someone who has the same mandate, like another volunteer centre. For example, we can shares policies on how to operate a volunteer centre.

Q: Are you using videoconference equipment for meetings?

A: We are using the VC equipment for meetings with other volunteer centres. In the past, some of these discussions would happen via teleconference – but I find that the face-to-face interaction you get with VC is much better.

Q: Have you participated in any training using VC?

A: We participated in Volunteer Alberta's Risk Management workshop for the NPVS sector, the Board Development workshops, and the iCCAN Plain Language workshop.

Q: What other kinds of interactions has VC made possible?

A: When Ruth Mackenzie (Executive Director for Volunteer Canada) was in Alberta this past November,

Volunteer Alberta created an opportunity for people to touch base with her over VC at the same time. Our national volunteer centre conference was coming up, and the interaction with Ruth over VC provided an opportunity to give her some feedback and have some discussion prior to going to the conference. It was also a neat way to get to know people, and was nice to see people's faces so that when I went to the conference I was more familiar with the people who were there.

What People Are Saying about iCCAN

"We believe this is an enormous step forward in taking learning to the learner regardless of where they reside. The start up support has been invaluable as have the training opportunities. There is a lot more to this than plugging in a TV. It is very important that iCCAN continue its work because the communities need this support and don't have the funding and staff to continue this quality training without iCCAN." - Charleen Schnick, Community Learning Council Wetaskiwin & Area

"We have fewer resources, our needs are getting greater and our communities are changing all the time. We have to be able to obtain the knowledge and experiences to provide the appropriate training to our educators. With videoconferencing we can learn from communities that already have experience working with a certain group of people. We can work together and share our knowledge resources and experience within the province. And there is a lot less travel for people. The whole province is benefiting from the iCCAN program" - Heather Kazimir, Adult Basic Literacy Education (ABLE), Medicine Hat College (Based in Brooks)

"It is a real money saver. There is no travel time involved and no mileage cost. With practice we will become more comfortable and better at it. We need the training that iCCAN provides." - Marilyn Dixon, Adult Literacy Coordinator - Rainbow Literacy, Vulcan

"We have to keep the momentum going. The majority of sites still need help, technical advice and back up support through iCCAN. The iCCAN training and the weekly Coffee Hour and are essential. I'm excited by the options, ideas and creative things that come forward in that shared space (Coffee Hour). The networking is so important. And we help each other. People will say – ‘oh, you've done this so much – I hate to ask the question – it's so stupid.' Well it's not stupid. We all have the dumb question – and I might have asked it two months ago and I might not have asked it yet. I've been doing this for a year and a half and I still want that security blanket (of iCCAN) to fall back on." - Val Rathjen, Executive Director. Flagstaff Community Adult Learning Council

"I see iCCAN as a connector that can bring different people to the table. If we all had one body to go to and say ‘this what we're interested in' – and it gets fanned out from there – it makes things a lot easier. Also, the technical back up is key so we can just concentrate on developing and delivering content." - Martha Urquhart, Slave Lake Adult Education Committee

"It's so nice to be able to tie into iCCAN. It opens up the world for rural communities. The resources that we have here can be tied into other resources and it creates a real synergy. It's not enough to just get the equipment up, get the network started and then leave it in our hands. We don't have the culture of use yet. And some communities like us are just getting on. We need more time for that. The iCCAN project is the key to facilitating the achievement of our goals. The ongoing support and linkages that the ICCAN provides will add to the productivity, versatility and ultimate success of the mainstreaming of videoconferencing in rural Alberta. Without this project our community would still be without an accessible and public site. " - Christie Dick, SAMDA Economic Development

"It's expediting that process of getting to know people because you can see their face rather than trying to envision them. That creates a level of trust. And when you call on a person they are more likely to share information." - Jacqueline Hutton, Executive Director, Grande Prairie Volunteer Centre

"If the technical support doesn't continue through iCCAN – it will be a disaster. We absolutely need technical support and content providers because it is complex and people will not be motivated because it is too complex. I don't think anybody anticipated the time it would take to get the sites up and running. We need another year to achieve the outcomes. We've talked to Norquest about getting some training. They are willing to make this happen with Literacy Alberta. ESL trainers now drive to Stettler on request to train literacy tutors. iCCAN could do the training and coordinate the bodies." - Bonnie Ireland, Stettler & District Community Adult Learning Council