Learning
Learn the skills employers seek
The learning offered within our six courses help you develop key skills employers seek in new hires, as shown in the Skills for Success piece on the About page. We've included a chart showing which Skills for Success are featured in each of our six courses.
Prepare for successful enrollment
To be accepted for enrollment here at Kwriter Academy, you are required to provide proof of your grade 12 completion. We also need you to complete a basic reading and writing quiz as those skills are essential for you to succeed in our courses.
Assessment and feedback
Once you are enrolled in a course, your assignments will be previewed, if you wish, then reviewed again and assessed by your instructor. If you need help, email your instructor. She’ll help you out. Please note we assess student assignments using percentages instead of grades (As and Bs, for example) . We use feedback, a percentage and a pass or fail determination on assignments and course work, as per Ministry of Education standards.
Support all the way through
Upon completion of your course assignments and your final exam (open book, multiple choice), you must achieve a minimum 80% average to receive a certificate along with a personalized assessment letter. If at any point, a learner is struggling, reach out and we will help you succeed. Learn more about our Support Ecosystem, outlined below.
The best course order for learners
We recommend using the following course order because it will make your learning a more natural progression. Learners benefit from following a course order where one course naturally leads to the next. The challenges flow in a way that are more understandable and can enable progress and success. To make this learning a smooth experience, we suggest you start here -
1. Career Planning
Start by designing your own work life and map out how you will reach your career goals. This is a free, two-week micro course, largely based on research presented by the Government of Canada, on how to build your very own and very private career plan. Remember, the paint is never dry with career plans and it's likely your plans will change over time. That's normal.
2. Portfolio Website
This next step is an important one because the portfolio website you build will showcase your future assignments as work examples. We'll show you how to create your own brand, develop a look and feel that fits you and your interests, then prepare and construct a website that showcases your skillset with your best work, your goals, your education and the key details of your career plan.
3. Professional Writing
The first work samples in your portfolio website will be completed assignments from this course. Given that everything is written in the workplace and across higher learning, we will introduce you to the CP Style of writing for government, business and news media reporting. By following CP Style, you will experience the power of writing well by using fewer words.
4. Strategic Communications
Learn how to write a communications plan and, during the process, learn the fundamental basics of strategic communications. There are specific elements that make a strategic plan come to life, not unlike a weaving and not so much like a scroll.
5. Digital Marketing
Welcome to the most essential, strategic digital tool that is the key to online marketing and communications. Learn how to build a digital marketing campaign using the latest, most effective methods and KPIs* to measure outomes. Also learn about how digital marketing has changed, progressed and how some of the most successful businesses in the world are driving advancements online.
*Key Performance Indicators
6. Digital Writing
Learn the distinctions for writing effective web content, social media posts and ads, as well as blogs and emails. You will learn how to succeed at digital writing, how to connect and persuade audiences using effective strategies that you develop in this course to achieve what we call the mastery level of author engagement.
Almost all learning resources at Kwriter Academy are Open and provided at no charge.
Please purchase a recent edition of the Canadian Press Stylebook, a reference tool used by government, business and media for guidance with grammar in professional writing and communication materials.
Our format makes learning easier
Upon registration, students receive a course plan with access to timelines, textbooks and selected readings, assignments, handouts, slide decks and links to various resources that support each lesson module. Think of these learning resources as your own private library of material you get to keep for future reference.
A real human instructor meets with learners once a week to discuss key content as shown on your course calendar.
Video clips are provided to introduce, remind and guide learners through these meetings, along with details on required reading, studies and assignments. This information is also provided in writing and shared on your course module.
Assignments, quizzes , videos and a final exam are included with each course. These are evaluation tools that indicate your level of understanding and growth from start to finish.
Our support system is all yours
Think of our support system as an exclusive arsenal of resources you can access whenever you are strugging, feeling unsure, doubting your abilities, or just feel stuck -- as we all do at times.
Our online community network offers a few options to get you back on track. It's also a safe space for 'learners only' that we created so you can learn from one another and get to know your classmates.
Learning from one another can offer a peer interaction that feels safer, is more relatable and can become a highly engaging environment without the instructor.
"According to educational and neuroscientific research, the human brain is highly social, meaning that learning is deeply tied to emotional connection and community. When students collaborate, they are not just absorbing information—they are actively processing it through shared experiences." - David Brooks, columnist, New York Times, January 2019.
Your support options -
The Kwriter Academy Community Network
We'll set up an online connection where you can communicate with other students enrolled in the course. Here, you can post questions, look around for similar questions and answers, or just reach out and say hello. Start a conversation.
Instructor support upon request
Email your instructor at [email protected] to set up a 20 minute chat about subject content, questions, or anything that might be holding you back.
Distinct learning advantages to keep in mind
This learning prepares you for the workplace and gives you an advantage to perform well. Also, learners choose their own assignment topics so they have some understanding and come away with relevant work samples for their portfolio.
Free, Open learning resources
As an advocate of Open Learning, the folks at Kwriter Academy use pressbooks and other Open Educational Resources (OER) which are free of charge. We curate content from various sources to add relevance, depth and interest. These are 'real life examples' from varied workplaces and news publishers, a mix of academic rigor, authenticity and a dash of the unexpected.
Learn more about OER here
Our teaching method
Our courses are designed to promote cognitive engagement* which involves mental effort, persistence and strategic thinking. Learners engage and grow by applying critical thinking skills, self-regulation and by connecting new information to prior knowledge. Strategies to promote a deep desire to learn include: having choices, taking on collaborative, open-ended projects and creating tasks that require critical thinking rather than simple recall.
These elements are woven into studies, quizzes, assignments and a final multiple-choice exam. Our teaching method requires learners to achieve a minimum 80% average upon completion (which includes a multiple-choice, open book test) to qualify for a certificate. We assess based on criteria outlined for each course. Learners can access that criteria once enrollment is complete.
*Cognitive engagement is the psychological and mental effort a person invests in learning or solving a problem. It goes beyond just “showing up” or completing tasks; it involves active thinking, critical analysis, self-reflection and a genuine desire to understand complex ideas.
Source - James Goodman 2008
