Digital literacy course aims to close tech gap in rural and Indigenous communities

‘As long as you have good internet, you're really able to create business and prosperity from anywhere if you have the right tools to get you there,’ says Anthony Wingham. / SUBMITTED PHOTO

A new six-week digital literacy program developed through Jelly Academy is gaining momentum across rural and Indigenous communities, aiming to equip learners with the foundational skills needed to participate in an increasingly digital world.

Instructor Anthony Wingham told The Rural Roundup the idea for the course came directly from seeing learners struggle with basic online tasks. “This idea came out from my own experience going through different online courses [and] seeing a lot of the students that were coming in from the northern communities. The skills to actually do the program were not there,” he said. 

Wingham noted that while the tech industry focuses heavily on advanced tools and artificial intelligence, “a lot of us are being left behind.” From online banking, virtual meetings to creating presentations for business pitches, the digital literacy course aims to fill that gap. 

Participants learn how to set up and manage email accounts, identify suspicious emails and use authentication apps for added security. The curriculum includes Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Google Suite tools. Students learn to build documents, spreadsheets, and presentations — skills Wingham says are immediately useful for both community life and emerging entrepreneurship.

After learning core tools, students complete a final project and present it to the class for graduation.

The first cohort, delivered to the Métis Nation of B.C., included students aged 50 to 65. Wingham described the experience as powerful. “The biggest thing we think about in rural communities, whether it's Indigenous or not, a lot of times the opportunity that is given is usually to the smartest or the brightest community member. They need to leave that community. They need to come down to the city to go through that program and get that opportunity,” he said. 

“So really, this program is created to help keep those communities intact, help keep our First Nation, our Métis, our Inuit communities together as well as non-Indigenous, really allowing them to excel in the community that they're at. With the way that digital skills have really started connecting the world, you know, as long as you have good internet, you're really able to create business and prosperity from anywhere if you have the right tools to get you there.”

Jelly Academy is now preparing two cohorts in Toronto in December and January, and the program is exploring future delivery within correctional institutions. Wingham noted that for people “locked up for years, the world has completely changed,” and digital skills are essential for reintegration.

Funding remains the biggest barrier to the success of the program. He said a lot of the focus right now for digital tools is on artificial intelligence but not a lot on foundational skills to meet the AI adoption goals. He also emphasized that in-person instruction is often more effective than online delivery.

He believes government support is critical, especially for northern and remote communities, and that investing in digital upskilling is essential for national security and northern resilience. “If we really want to talk about defence… we really have to start upskilling a lot of those northern communities so that they're on the same level as a lot of us down in the lower half of Canada.”

His broader message is clear: “We really need to make sure that all of Canada has those key foundational skills.”

When asked if a rural lens on public policies would help address some of these barriers, Wingham said, “I do believe that, yes.”

He added: “I've done a lot of trips up to Nunavut, up to Whitehorse. I'm part of a program called Connected North where I'm able to Zoom into classrooms of kids from Grades 7 to Grade 12, and they want to be in their community, they want to stay in their community. They just need the opportunities that they see down in those bigger cities.”

More information about the program is available at Jelly Academy.