COL-Coursera WORKFORCE Recovery Programme

The unprecedented impact of COVID-19 on teaching and learning is a worldwide concern, with over 1.5 billion learners not attending schools. Keeping the doors of learning open during this crisis is the responsibility of all stakeholders in education. Over the last fifty years, open and distance education institutions have offered quality teaching and learning at a distance using a range of technologies – print, radio, television, computer and the Internet. New developments in web technologies and increasing access to mobile applications open new possibilities. As an intergovernmental organisation, the Commonwealth of Learning (COL) has the mandate to promote the use of distance learning and technologies for increasing access to quality education and training in the Commonwealth.

The COL and Coursera partnered to support Commonwealth citizens who lost their jobs due to the COVID-19 fallout through the ‘Workforce Recovery Program’. This course, provided on Coursera, targets unemployed citizens with the aim of developing job-relevant skills for a swift return to the workforce. Coursera courses are taught by 200 of the world’s leading university and industry educators attuned to the need of equipping people with skills for employment.

Created by Commonwealth Heads of Government in 1987, the COL helps Member States and institutions harness the potential of distance learning and technologies to expand access to education and training and address the education challenges of today. For COL, learning is the key to sustainable development and must lead to opportunities for economic growth, social inclusion and environmental conservation. Visit www.col.org for more details.

COL-Coursera-Workforce-Recovery-Program-Brochure