Organizational, Pedagogical and Conceptual Changes in the Provision of Education in Rural New Zealand and Atlantic Canadian Communities

Abstract

In New Zealand and the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador schools in rural communities have adapted to the e-environment to create enhanced learning opportunities for young people. Traditional rural schools have become constituent sites in educational intranets within which e-learning has developed. Intranets provide electronic frameworks within with virtual classes can be organized between rural sites and through which teachers and learners can interact in new ways. Within these electronic educational structures pedagogical considerations have emerged, including the integration of virtual environments to complement and extend traditional schools. It is possible that the adaptation of rural schools to the e-environment will provide lessons for other schools. Keywords: e-learning, e-teaching, intranet, collaborative teaching, sparsely-populated regions, New Zealand, Newfoundland and Labrador