Today, the learning world is a different place.  Our sense of the future has changed, home education has evolved, our students are different, and the very nature of information has changed.  As little as we know about the future for which we are preparing our children, it is clear that it will be directed by information and technology.  Accessing, processing, building with, and communicating that information will be a major part of our daily educational, occupational, and personal work and play.

Alberta's increasing student enrollment in home education and virtual learning tells us that we are dealing with a society of children who are no longer as interested in the traditional classroom as in previous years.  Alberta's growing population of student dropouts, indicate that many of them dislike learning.  But if students dislike learning, how will they survive in a world where learning is a constant and necessary process?

As educators and as communities, we face the fundamental question, "What do children need to be learning today?" And, "How do they need to be learning it?"  Content is clearly no longer the most important part of learning.  What the student can do with the content however, and how the student will take the facts that are learned and add value to the family and community will determine the success of an education program.

At The Home Education Exchange, we believe that the purpose of education is two pronged:  to help students learn facts - involving the ability to read, write, and work with numbers; and, to help students discover their purpose in life.  In an information-governed landscape, their learning must expand to harness the rapidly changing technological and digital base of information.

Students will probably not take jobs that place them in desks, neatly placed in straight rows.  Nor will they take jobs in age segregated environments; rather, they will go into the workplace to work collectively with others around them.  People with varying views, nationalities, and training.  They will be involved in groups and communities that require creative communication, integrated technology, and digital information.  It is our purpose to help our home educated students and parents integrate technology into their education program to improve student learning through initiatives that enhance student engagement and performance in a digital world.