Facilitating Connected Learning

Connected North provides live, interactive virtual learning experiences and access to educational resources for students and teachers in remote communities, supporting them where they live. Through the program, Indigenous students from Kindergarten - Grade 12 are offered unique opportunities to thrive.

Remote and northern Indigenous communities across Canada face persistent inequities in access to education: fewer local specialist teachers and enrichment opportunities, limited exposure to role models, and barriers to consistent, culturally relevant programming. Remoteness itself is a measurable driver of lower high-school completion for First Nations, Métis, and Inuit learners, underscoring that distance and limited local services translate into real gaps in outcomes. (Statistics Canada)

These learning gaps are compounded by connectivity challenges that continue to affect many rural, remote, and Indigenous regions, restricting reliable access to digital learning and support networks. (CRTC)

Connected North exists to address these intertwined barriers by using live, two-way, high-definition video to connect K-12 classrooms in remote Indigenous communities with interactive lessons, mentors, and culturally grounded experiences that would not otherwise be available locally—aiming to boost engagement and close opportunity gaps.

Some of the key results from our 2025 educator survey include:

• 96% of teachers feel that Connected North Sessions help to engage students, contributing to attendance in class and motivation for learning
• 93% say that the program affirms students' identities and pride in their cultures
• 89% feel more confident in using technology as an innovative learning tool
• 96% say sessions sparked greater curiosity and interest in learning among students

We're always evolving the Connected North program based on the feedback of participating educators and content providers. One key insight in recent school years was the gap in access to guidance councillors in very small schools, and the lack of support for students in these areas to be aware of deadlines and course requirements for post-secondary. This led to us researching all public post-secondary schools in Canada, and launching the Future Pathways Navigator resource (www.futurepathwaysnavigator.org) in the summer of 2025 to provide a free, open education resource to begin addressing this gap.

The Connected North program continues to expand, thanks to word of mouth from our valued network of educators and content providers! In the 2024-25 school year, we reached a milestone of 200 schools served, and we're welcoming 18 new schools in 2025-26, for a total of 218. We aim to continue to grow the program by 8-10% each year, reaching 300 schools by the end of 2030.