That’s why we’ve been working with D2L to deliver webCampus, an online e-learning portal that gives members and their families free access to over 200 courses on everything from health and safety to labor laws and digital skills.
Our mission at the United Food and Commercial Workers Union (UFCW) Canada is to protect and promote workers’ rights and social justice for all. We offer the most advanced labor education programming in North America because our union believes that education is empowering. We help workers find their voice and fulfil their potential.
That’s why we’ve been working with D2L to deliver webCampus, an online e-learning portal that gives members and their families free access to over 200 courses on everything from health and safety to labor laws and digital skills. The courses are designed for workers to learn at their own pace, anytime, anywhere.
Our goal with webCampus is to connect our members with the skills they need to grow professionally. Many of us left school thinking that we were done with education, but the labor market is changing. It’s estimated that 85% of all jobs that will exist in 2030 haven’t even been created yet. Digital and IT skills are increasingly in demand, and workers will need to update their skill sets to get ahead.
Together with D2L, we have redesigned and expanded our course catalog to make our learning content as accessible and engaging as possible. We deliver courses in lots of different formats to meet the diverse needs and learning styles of our members. For example, webCampus On-the-Go modules look at interesting topics and relevant skills that can be completed in 15 minutes or less. Topics include effective responses to managers, how to be assertive in the workplace and how to deal with discrimination. We also offer college-accredited courses, micro-credentials and hybrid courses that blend live, instructor-led Zoom sessions with self-paced, independent learning.
As a result, webCampus registrations and course completions are on the rise and we’re very happy to see it. More than 1000 members have registered for our new Exploring Digital Skills course that combines digital literacy, IT skills and competencies that are increasingly important in today’s workplace.
Working with D2L makes it possible for us to deliver what I believe is a world-class education service with a team of just four people. The Brightspace platform is functional, intuitive and well-supported, and our technical account manager is always just a phone call away.
As we continue to expand our course catalog, we’re making extensive use of the Brightspace HTML page templates to create and customize new learning content. We’re also using Brightspace Data Hub to understand how members are engaging with webCampus and track course completion so that we can make their learning experience even better.
I really appreciate the fact that D2L is constantly building new tools and we’re able to get involved in the process. For example, I saw a demo of an early version of a new interactive element that the D2L product team was working on, and I really liked it. We became a beta tester for that feature and provided a lot of feedback, which D2L took on board. As a result, the final version that D2L released was much more user-friendly, so it was a win-win.
And it feels good to be pushing the boundaries. We may be a relatively small organization in terms of staffing, but we have a lot of smart people and we’re always looking at what we can do next. We’re excited to continue our partnership with D2L so we can give more of our members the opportunity to develop new skills and succeed in the workplace.
The webCampus portal, powered by D2L Brightspace, offers redesigned courses with 15-minute modules for flexible learning, providing union members with an opportunity to enhance their professional growth with accessible and convenient access from anywhere, anytime.
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