Commonwealth of Learning - Institutional Support 2015-2018

This grant represents Canada’s institutional support to the Commonwealth of Learning (COL). COL uses these funds along with other donor funding to achieve its mandate. COL’s mandate is to help governments and institutions expand the scope scale and quality of learning by using new approaches and technologies for open and distance learning. COL applies open and distance learning to programs in grade schooling teacher education higher education skills development farming and the development of healthy communities. In the education sector COL will support countries institutions and organizations in their development of formal education mechanisms including: open schooling higher education virtual university for small states of the Commonwealth and teacher education. In the skills sector COL will support institutions and organisations to develop formal and non-formal learning opportunities that focus on: healthy communities technical and vocational skills development Lifelong Learning for Farmers and technology-enabled learning. Canada’s support to COL contributes to finding durable solutions to education challenges and improving the quality of learning in developing countries across the Commonwealth.

More learners particularly girls have access to quality learning opportunities at the secondary level through the introduction and expansion of open schooling; More teacher education and training institutions use open and distance learning (ODL) methods to provide quality training and continuing professional development; Higher education institutions have ODL policies systems and materials in place to provide quality education to increased numbers of people particularly women and marginalised communities; More Virtual University of Small States in the Commonwealth partner institutions collaboratively develop and deliver relevant courses through the use of appropriate open and distance learning methods including eLearning strategies as per the Transnational Qualifications Framework (TQF); Organisations and institutions increase equitable access to quality technical and vocational skills development through flexible and blended approaches particularly for the informal sector; Marginalised rural communities negotiate and access development resources in a sustainable manner through the use of gender sensitive open and distance learning and as a result of partnerships between government civil society and the private sector; and More and better learning opportunities about community health and development are in use particularly by women and youth in resource-poor communities.