UPLIFT FAQs
In May 2005, a partnership of community and voluntary groups, central government and Whitireia Community Polytechnic secured funding from Microsoft’s Unlimited Potential grant scheme to develop training to support the work of Community Technology Learning Centres.
This fact sheet explains what that funding is being used for.
Unlimited Potential Learning Foundation FAQs
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What’s a Community Technology Learning Centre?
A Community Technology Learning Centre (CTLC) is a place where people can get free or low cost use of information and communication technologies (ICT). A CTLC provides opportunities for people to learn about ICT in a way that meets their needs.
A CTLC might be:
- a building which is permanently used for ICT learning,
- an existing community facility which is mainly used for other purposes e.g. a library, whare, radio station, community cafe or school,
- an existing community project where ICT learning is one of many services,
- a network of community and/or voluntary groups in a specific area who are working together to skill their staff, volunteers or service users in ICT.
CTLCs are always ‘not for personal profit’, e.g. any money made by the centre is invested back in the centre or the community it serves.
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The Unlimited Potential Learning Foundation is about building partnerships in economically disadvantaged and under-served communities across the country to enable people to use ICT.
It involves a residential course, on-line support network and national awards programme. The four day, residential course will focus on:
- Using the Unlimited Potential Curriculum to customize courses for your learners
- Making your CTLC more sustainable
- Understanding the different ways people learn
- Technology and enterprise development
The training, travel and accommodation will be provided free to eligible community CTLCs operating in underserved and economically disadvantaged communities.
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An online graduate support network will be set up to enable participants to discuss issues, as well as find tools and share case studies to assist their work. The exact shape and functions of the network will be evolved with graduates to meet their needs.
Everyone who attends the course makes a commitment to training others before July 2007.
Specifically, designing and delivering a training session to a maximum of 30 people in their CTLC. Each graduate also agrees to train one other trainer for their CTLC and to support that person to deliver a training session for up to 12 people in their CTLC. (The actual number of people that graduates will provide training to varies according to which course they attend.)
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How long are the training sessions graduates deliver?
The Unlimited Potential Learning Foundation course will explore the Unlimited Potential Curriculum and help trainers to use this product to create customised training for their learners.
Each course graduate will create and deliver a training session to local people. These sessions can be from 30 minutes upwards in length. Graduates complete quarterly reports for the Unlimited Potential Learning Foundation Partners detailing the number of people receiving these training sessions.
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Who can take part in Unlimited Potential Learning Foundation?
Unlimited Potential Learning Foundation is available to paid or voluntary trainers and managers of CTLCs in economically disadvantaged and/or under-served areas.
Successful applicants will be:
- Competent PC users who are familiar with at least two of Microsoft’s software packages
- Committed to training other people in their community
- Able to contribute to the training course and the graduate network
- Sponsored by their organisation to complete the training course and training commitments
If the courses are over-subscribed the following criteria will be used to prioritise applications which:
- Provide free ICT learning opportunities to the country’s most economically disadvantaged and/or underserved communities.
- Assist in enabling the Unlimited Potential Learning Foundation to reach people who have specific needs, e.g. applicants from projects serving disabled people, Maori, Pacific Island Nation communities, older people, people whose first language is not English etc.
- Assist in giving the Unlimited Potential Learning Foundation national impact e.g. applicants from geographic areas when there has been no expressed interest in the course.
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Many community technology projects use software from a range of sources. To be eligible for the Unlimited Potential Learning Foundation course you must be providing some training in Microsoft software to local people.
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One aim of this work is to connect up existing community CTLCs and help to create opportunities for new CTLCs to emerge. If your CTLC is not eligible but you still want to know more about the courses, awards or network, please contact UPLIFT@whitireia.ac.nz
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You can get an application pack by downloading it from this page, or, for more information:
|
Contact person |
DIA Community Development Advisor or as below |
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Postal address |
Unlimited Potential Learning Foundation Whitireia Community Polytechnic Private Bag 50910 Porirua City |
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Phone |
0800 944 847 |
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Email |
UPLIFT@whitireia.ac.nz |
A series of ‘orientation’ sessions will be held across the country to let people know about the Unlimited Potential Learning Foundation. These sessions will be advertised through the local press and community networks.
The orientation sessions are an opportunity for your organisation to explore and shape the content of the course, assess the benefits of involvement and the terms of the partnership.
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The Unlimited Potential Learning Foundation is a community & voluntary sector, polytechnic, corporate and government partnership.
Community: An Advisory Group for the Learning Foundation emerged from a meeting of community CTLCs in January 2005. This group’s role is in directing the development of the Learning Foundation and includes representatives from Whangerei, Dunedin, Wellington, Tokoroa, Auckland, Christchurch, Porirua and Moerewa.
Polytechnic: Whitireia Community Polytechnic is responsible for designing and delivering the training course, with input from the Advisory Group on orientation, course development and training evaluation.
Corporate: Microsoft have provided the funding for the project and will facilitate linking up with global CTLC networks.
Government: The Department of Internal Affairs who are responsible for leading the community actions within the government’s Digital Strategy. Their staff will play various support roles to deliver the programme, including reporting to Microsoft.
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The government applied for the funding because there is no single national community or voluntary organization working to support community ICT activities. The government is committed to ensuring that everyone can access and use ICT and has a number of strategies to achieve this, e.g. Digital Strategy, Connecting Communities, E-Government, E-Learning etc.
At the Connecting Communities conference in November 2003, community delegates gave some clear messages to government about community based learning in ICT skills.
These included:
- More support for locally based learning in safe and comfortable environments.
- Use existing community resources such as Marae, churches, schools, libraries etc as venues for ICT learning.
- Provide learning which meets the immediate needs and aspirations of the learner.
- Embrace digital story telling, asset mapping and other ICT focused activities that engage people in making meaning about their lives.
These messages were taken up in the government’s Digital Strategy which includes actions and funding to support communities use of ICT.
The Unlimited Potential Learning Foundation is part of the Digital Strategy. www.digitalstrategy.govt.nz
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Back to the UPLIFT Application page.