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E-Learning is the next big thing in adult extended learning; any small community can increase revenues and help out members of their community by adding a single classroom designed for interactive remote learning. Many individuals in rural communities simply don’t have computers in the home but survey show many of these same individuals and their family members want internet access and access to quality adult and post secondary learning opportunities. These opportunities can now be added to any classroom with internet access and some basic computer equipment.

Many post secondary institutions across the world are now switching to e-learning revenue models to extend their revenue streams and expand their audience. With these expansions students are looking for places where they can still interact directly with instructors via web cameras and virtual private networks (VPNs) which let instructors directly take control of student’s computers and correct problem in real time.

Finally these same computer classrooms can serve yet another purpose; industry can rent the classroom for conference calls and private training facilities.

The Classroom

At each community classroom there will be a series of 10 desks with computers, a facilitator who has technical experience on how to maintain the equipment, one or two projectors, and a high speed internet connection. We need the high speed internet connection for the amount of data that has to go through.

Each computer will have a webcam and a specialized button which will give immediate help. All they have to do is hit the button and the facilitator or the instructor can help the student.

There may be additional buttons, a series of specialized keyboards with help, as well as a variety of simple button options designed to give immediate response back to the instructor. The objective of each of these classrooms is to allow students ready access on the community level to a variety of courses, whether technical or basic learning and allowing an increased pool of educators willing to educate in aboriginal communities. The facilitator should be someone local to the community, employed full time, with perhaps several people to maintain the equipment and help out students with minor technical problems; simple things like keyboard issues, monitor issues, etc.

The Courses

The classroom is just one part of the final training system, and will be very generic to allow courses from many, many business fields to be used in the system.  Educational departments like NAIT, the U of A, Grant MacEwan University will be asked to set up instructor classrooms with camera systems to allow remote instructors to access the new community learning centers.

The courses themselves can vary across several fields’ anatomy, biology, environmental sciences, computer technology, and sociology just to name a few. However the most profitable courses for the school will be courses they can run and administrate and simply hire instructors to do the remote learning.

Some current courses being discussed for the adjunct classroom:

University of Alberta Technology Training Center

The Technology Training Centre prides itself on being more than just another computer training centre.  Implementing knowledge gained to ensure the value of time and money spent on training is of the utmost importance. The centre offers standard desktop application training ranging from Microsoft Office to the Adobe Creative Suite along with offering customized one-on-one or group training.

CompTIA Certification

The CompTIA certification is the industry standard for computer support technicians. The international, vendor-neutral certification proves competence in areas such as installation, preventative maintenance, networking, security and troubleshooting. CompTIA certified technicians also have excellent customer service and communication skills to work with clients.

Microsoft Certifications

Microsoft Certifications are available for most Microsoft technologies and skill levels from business workers to IT professionals, developers, technology trainers, and system architects. Achieving a Microsoft Certification helps provide you with up-to-date, relevant skills that can help lead to a more fulfilling career, while giving you access to valuable Microsoft Certification Program benefits. These benefits include access to the Microsoft Certification Program or the Microsoft Office Specialist (MOS) Certification member site and a vast, global network of other certified professionals.

Budget

We will assume for budgetary purposes a single classroom, needing administrative and technical support. An examination of three budgets a break even scenario, a likely scenario, and an optimistic scenario. Revenue is projects between each budget by the number of hours the class would be in use each month, and the average number of students attending the classes.

Expenses are calculated in three parts; administrative duties, technical support, and instructor fees.

In order to make this classroom successful many courses should be offered and only courses with 7 or more students applying would be run. Additionally, because of the nature of e-learning courses several classrooms in several small communities could be organized in a way to allow several groups of students to all be trained at once by a single instructor there by reducing costs and increasing revenues even further.

Appendix VII – Further Research Possibilities

A.      Long-Term Community Growth Analysis

One of the most important products of this project is an opportunity to take what is learned from developing broadband in these communities and apply it to the province as a whole. If a statistically relevant benefit is found in developing and nurturing broadband in the St. Paul region, when taken in comparison to communities that do not have the same support, that would be significant evidence to take this study on a larger scale. To that end, a report should be sponsored by and provided to the government that analyses long-term community growth in the St. Paul region against other similarly composed regions in Alberta. This report would be looking for evidence of three particulars – economic growth, marked by the creation of employment opportunities, increases in real income, or increases in economic self-sufficiency; educational development, marked by increases in secondary and post-secondary educations amongst population; and lastly quality of life, determined by a survey distributed to the region and the community well-being index. High speed broadband has the potential to spur increases in any of the above, and if the increases in the St. Paul region are significant enough to justify the initial costs of such a project, Alberta could find itself on a precipice of a rural digital revolution.

B.     Using E-Learning Adjunct Classrooms to Increase Community Revenue

Schools in rural communities such as the ones surveyed for this study deal with significant budgetary concerns as a result of their limited student base. In order to even maintain their basic classroom settings, additional government financing is often required. To that end, a new revenue stream for rural schools would have the potential to significantly increase the abilities of rural schools to perform more self-sufficiently, leading to a superior student environment, potentially a higher quality of education going forward, and increased employment opportunities for rural communities.

This proposal, in combination with earlier analysis on E-Learning would help schools to do just that. One of the greatest obstacles in establishing an E-Learning class on the level discussed earlier in the report would be to set up the infrastructure in a suitable classroom environment. Rural schools offer an ideal setting that meets this need, while offering additional revenues for the community as a whole.

A full report was previously submitted and is included below.

Appendix VI – Chanalyzer Frequency Scans Pt. 5

Figure 17a: White Fish Lake 900 MHz Analysis

The whole of the 900MHz spectrum around White Fish Lake is routine, low noise interference and one or two weak signals.

Figure 17b: White Fish Lake 900 MHz

Figure 18: White Fish Lake 5.6 GHz

White Fish Lake is actually the most active in the 5.6 GHz Range, but still very little activity.

Appendix VI – Chanalyzer Frequency Scans Pt. 4

Figure 14: Heart Lake Lower 900 MHz

The lower 900MHz is mundane, low noise interference and one or two weak signals.

Figure 15: Heart Lake Upper 900 MHz

Heart Lake has a large spread spectrum signal across the 902 to 910 MHz frequency band; most likely from a cellular phone tower, it will have to be avoided. The rest of the band is open.

Figure 16: Beaver Lake Upper 900 MHz Analysis

The 900 MHz across Beaver Lake is very quiet. There is a remnant of a 900 to 910 MHz signal also seen at White Fish Lake, but here it is a very weak noise. The primary signal is somewhere between Beaver Lake and Heart Lake. The interference was the highest in the north east section of Beaver Lake.

Appendix VI – Chanalyzer Frequency Scans Pt. 3

Figure 12: Frog Lake 5.2 to 5.8 GHz, 13/04/2010, 10 min scan

A scan of the 5 GHz range across the Frog Lake area; no significant signals (> -80dBm) were found.

Figure 13a: Kehewin – odd interference in the 900MHz range

Kehewin is covered across the 900 MHz range with an odd interference pattern that will require additional towers as faint signals will be very unstable. There seems to be a small signal at the 864 MHz frequency, but other than that Kehewin is devoid of RF signals.

Figure 13b: Kehewin interference

Appendix VI – Chanalyzer Frequency Scans Pt. 2

Figure 9: Cold Lake 863-870 MHz, 13/04/2010, 4:36 Scan

Cold Lake towers 900 MHz Spectral Analysis clearly show a strong signal (-80dBm to -60dBm) from the Kinusoo tower in the 865 MHz frequency and a secondary Frog Lake tower some distance away in the 863 MHz with no noticeable interference.

Figure 10: Frog Lake 863-870 MHz, 13/04/2010, 7:33 Scan

The once small signal is now much stronger near the Frog Lake site, with a max signal of greater than -60dBm. Again much of the frequency is still wide open for additional signals.

Figure 11a: Frog Lake 904-926 MHz, 13/04/2010, 5 min scan

Once again there is more of the 900MHz spectrum left completely open; ample room for additional signals. The lower frequencies show several weak signals, showing activity around Frog Lake but none with a strong or consistent enough signal to hold a connection. Several of the signals continued to get stronger further south, but the origination source was never found.

Figure 11b:  Frog Lake 863-870 MHz, 13/04/2010, 5 min scan

Appendix VI – Chanalyzer Frequency Scans Pt. 1

Each image is three scans compiled over time and across a distance at specific locations in order to get the best sampling of radio spectrums. The explanation of each spectrum is taken from the Chanalyzer User Guide: 

Spectral View

The Spectral View contains a waterfall graph that shows amplitude over time for each frequency. Based on the timeframe a row is added to the Spectral View every X seconds or minutes. The color of each frequency/time coordinate represents the amplitude of that frequency, with dark blue representing low amplitudes and bright red representing high amplitudes as shown in the legend. 

Topographic View

The Topographic View contains an amplitude over frequency graph similar to the Planar View, but instead of showing the current amplitude of each frequency it shows the popularity of each frequency/amplitude coordinate during the time displayed. The coloration of the Topographic View is similar to the Spectral View with blue being low and red being high, but the coloration now represents the “popularity” instead of the amplitude.

Planar View

The Planar View shows a typical amplitude over frequency display. The yellow line shows the current amplitude, the green shows the average amplitude, and the blue shows the maximum amplitude.

Figure 7: Cold Lake 5.2 to 5.8 GHz, 13/04/2010, hour scan

After a full hour scan of the 5 GHz range across the Cold Lake area, no significant signals (> -80dBm) were found.

Figure 8: Cold Lake 904-926 MHz, 13/04/2010,  hour scan

This scan was taken directly under the Cold Lake transmission tower showing by far the strongest signal and the greatest amount of cross channel spanning 10 MHz.

Appendix VI – Technical Survey Results Pt. 2

Figure 4: Highway 897

30 km of road on highway 897, sparsely populated with 10 Wi-Fi connections across the entire road; no 900 MHz or 5.6 GHz signals at all.

Figure 5: Frog Lake

The Frog Lake area found 20 Wi-Fi hotspots, 6 concentrated in the central community and another large concentration of 5 in the town of Sputinow.

Figure 6: Frog Lake Community Centre

This is a close-up image of the Frog Lake Community Centre. Results are similar for the other communities surveyed.

Appendix VI – Technical Survey Results Pt. 1

The following is a collection of data and images taken during the technical survey.

Figure 1: Kehewin

The red line shows the path driven to run the survey and each dot represents a residential Wi-Fi signal’s range and approximate location. The large grouping is directly above the community centre and SuperNet hook-up.

Figure 2: Kehewin

This is a close-up of the high concentration of Wi-Fi signals in Central Kehewin. A total of 10 signals found in the central area.

Figure 3: Bonnyville

In contrast, the town of Bonnyville, containing hundreds of Wi-Fi hot spots just down a single street.

Appendix V – Sample Courses for Rural E-Learning 300-Level Pt. 3

RLS 303 – Mobile Computing

As rural communities become more technically literate, it may be advantageous to offer a free course on mobile computing. Portable computing devices are more common than ever, including smartphones, MP3 players, eBook readers, laptops, and tablet devices. There may not be as significant a demand in rural communities for these mobile computers now, but the introduction of high-speed broadband into these communities will serve as a potential gateway for other information age devices to make headway in these markets. It will be important for individuals to understand the benefits and the limitations of these devices. The course will delve into the different types of mobile computing devices, including a historical look at what once constituted a mobile computer, and explore what the future of mobile computing holds, taking a look at new technologies such as iPad. The course will explore how to synchronize these technologies with their home computer, with a specific technical analysis on Bluetooth and the added functionality synchronization provides. This course will also explore consumer needs regarding mobile computing; it will answer questions such as if mobile devices are right for the end user and what specific type of mobile device best meets their needs. The course will give individuals tools on how to evaluate mobile computers for purchasing decisions, and explore what tools are necessary to get the most out of the mobile experience.

Objectives:

1. Introduce the concept of mobile computing.

2. Discuss the advantages and disadvantages inherent to mobile computing:

-          Examples include having the ability to access electronic information from anywhere on the global network for advantages, and the limitations created by battery life for disadvantages

3. Provide a historical background for mobile computing

4. Discuss the types of mobile computing devices:

-          Talk about portable players such as MP3 players, personal digital assistants (PDAs), eBook readers, smart phones, tablets, and laptops

-          Investigate the standard capabilities of each option as well as their relative prices

-          Elaborate on advantages and disadvantages of mobile computing as each relates to the respective devices

5. Introduce Bluetooth and provide a technical background

6. Provide a demonstration of synchronizing a wireless device to a home or business computer

-          Demonstrate the added functionality this creates

7. Give individuals the tools they need to evaluate mobile devices as well as the necessary background to decide which mobile device best suits their individual needs

8. Have a discussion about the future of mobile devices and the new possibilities created by technology such as the iPad and Android OS for mobile phones.