Connected North: A Catalyst for Deeper Learning Experiences

Jennifer Corriero, Executive Director, TakingITGlobal & Connected North

When a child participates in a memorable learning experience that builds upon their natural sense of excitement and wonder, it can unlock their interests for many weeks, months and years to come.

For teachers to be able to meet the diverse needs of students in their classrooms, they need to be equipped with an abundance of responsive resources and relevant materials to support them along the way.

“Students were very enthralled at the different things they saw in the Connected North session. They remembered it most of the year. Super helpful!” Teacher Survey Response, June 2023

The Connected North program supports First Nations, Inuit and Métis students who are primarily located in Northern, remote Indigenous communities where the costs of travel are extremely expensive and field trips or even bringing in guest speakers are quite limited.

95.1% of teachers agree that Connected North sessions help to engage their students, contributing to their attendance in class and motivation for learning

(2023 Teacher Survey, 247 responses)

Over 1,000 live session offerings are available for teachers to request within our menu of options available to school partners in both print and on our digital platform for teachers to make requests. One teacher who took part in the program provided this highlight in our year end survey:

“I have absolutely loved having Connected North in my classroom. We did fantastic lessons on the different adaptations of fish, how to use a 3D Printer and hoop dancing. The students have found all of these sessions to be very engaging and continuously talk about them. I plan to utilize them even more next year!”

In alignment with the Truth and Reconciliation Commitment Call to Action #10, the program centres the offerings around the needs of the learners and communities from Kindergarten to Grade 12.

Call to Action 10 includes three actions we are focused on: working towards closing identified educational achievement gaps within one generation, development of culturally appropriate curricula, and a commitment to respecting and honouring Treaty relationships.

Our team works closely with Content Provider outreach and onboarding where nearly 50% of the available content providers are First Nations, Inuit and Métis professionals who set strong examples of what can be accomplished across all subject areas.

“It was beneficial to have Indigenous leaders in our classroom.” Teacher Survey Response, June 2023

“Connected North allows my students to go on virtual field trips that we would never get to experience because of our physical location in the world. You have made our world a little bit bigger!” Teacher Survey Response, June 2023

During this most recent 2022–23 school year, the program delivered over 6,500 sessions to classrooms located in 150 partner schools and the waiting list to participate in the program continues to grow.

“The Connected North sessions are a welcome addition to classroom lessons. They have boosted student attention and learning. We will look forward to more sessions in the new school year.” Teacher Survey Response, June 2023

Our network of content providers ranges from galleries, science centres, museums, zoos, cultural centres, post-secondary campuses, artist studios and workplaces where facilitators dedicate time to support sessions that are tailored to the needs of K-12 classrooms.

“We loved that the materials were provided and that the presenters were engaging and used manipulatives and puppets to teach us new things. It has been a great program this year! I have many more sessions I would love to book for next year!” Teacher Survey Response, June 2023

The seeds of fascination are nurtured in students each time they participate in a Connected North classroom session though a virtual field trip offering live, interactive, hands-on activities.

“Having experts to answer some specific student questions is really helpful.” Teacher Survey Response, June 2023

The investments we make as a society in supporting equitable access to educational resources and opportunities is critical. The children of today are the upcoming leaders of generations to come and they are relying on the decision-makers within all aspects of their lives to set them up for success.

98% of teachers say they are satisfied with the variety of content available through Connected North!

“Connected North is a ‘special’ activity in our class. Students look forward to these sessions. It gives students (and teacher) a different experience, different perspective, and a chance to meet unique people and skills. My students love to interact with the hosts and always appreciate the new information and skills they learn.” Teacher Survey Response, June 2023

Our team at TakingITGlobal is incredibly grateful to the ecosystem of partners and supporters who have helped to make this program possible including Education Authorities, foundations, government agencies, corporate social responsibility initiatives and individual donors.

“Connected North engages my students and they always leave motivated to learn.”

Teacher Survey Response, June 2023