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LEARN

Labour Education Applied Research North (LEARN) logoRead all LEARN Reports

Northwestern Polytechnic is proud to be a part of the Labour Education Applied Research North (LEARN) joint initiative. Established in 1995 by the Northern Alberta Development Council (NADC) and a group of northern Alberta post-secondary institutions LEARN seeks to:

  1. Provide the partners with labour force and economic information to help them identify new training programs, or modify, suspend, or terminate existing programs. This research informs decision-making regarding student funding and related matters.
  2. Investigate matters of community and/or economic development as they relate to the member institutions’ business.
  3. Report and investigate industry trends, specific occupations, and training opportunities, as well as other related topics such as demographic trends and community needs.

In addition to advancing communication, cooperation, and research priorities, LEARN strives to periodically connect with industry representatives in order to identify current and future labour force needs. Current partner institutions include: Northwestern Polytechnic, Keyano College, Portage College, and Northern Lakes College.

Big News for Micro-credentials

Northwestern Polytechnic is excited to share findings from the Micro-credentialing in Northern Alberta report. This work was commissioned by LEARN in September 2020 and the research contract was awarded to Academica in November 2020. The project involved a literature review, labour market and job posting analysis, interviews with industry, community and post-secondary representatives, along with a stakeholder workshop.

While micro-credentialling has been a part of various Continuing Education departments for some time, the increasing relevance of this approach has recently become clear. The process, which focuses on the rapid acquisition of targeted skills, knowledge and experience, may feature far more prominently in the future due to shifting learner demographics, technological disruption, evolving needs, and economic uncertainty. For more information about this important development please see the full report.