Fourteen high school graduates have completed their education after taking part in the Prairie Spirit School Division’s eLearning program. The program was created in the spring of 2020 when schools shut down due to the pandemic and since carried on as a permanent option for student across the division.

Neda Wilson is the principal of the Spirit eLearning program. She says the graduation ceremony was the first time some of the teachers and students met in person after having completed their school year through the internet. “When we think about advantages for Spirit eLearning, it’s certainly more flexible, it provides choices for students and their families. Students may chose this options for a variety of reasons. We provide quality education to students and we use creative ways to engage our students.”

Wilson says they do meet one-on-one with each student, although in a regular class setting, there may be several distractions present during that said conversation, therefore the online one-on-one interaction may prove to be more beneficial for certain students.

Wilson expects in the fall they could have upwards of 260 students taking part in the eLearning program. She adds in smaller communities served by the division, certain credit opportunities may not exist. That opens door for students to register for the eLearning program which may provide some additional classes students can take that aren’t available in–person where they live.