(UKIP) The computer as a teaching tool is playing an increasingly greater role in today’s classroom. This trend in education, publishers, teachers, students, and parents must address in all facets of the teaching and learning process.

In response to this trend and to help meet some of the needs for computer-assisted learning in English-Ukrainian classrooms, six educational institutions signed an agreement on November 14 to create the Ukrainian Knowledge internet Portal (UKIP) Consortium.

Among its many objectives, the UKiP Consortium will be responsible for establishing and managing a new electronic education network or portal for Ukrainian language and culture education. A portal is defined as a web site that acts as a gateway to information, tools and services in specific areas. The power of a portal lies in its ability to organize, transfer and facilitate communication between users.

The UKiP Consortium will also be responsible for portal content and is now in the process of digitizing some existing Ukrainian bilingual program resources. The digitized learning objects will have sound, images, text and animation and will be interactive. UKiP will also be responsible for commissioning the creation of new learning objects for use in both bilingual program and community schools across Canada.

The strength of UKiP will be in its national membership with representation from elementary to university levels of education. Representing the six founding UKiP organizations at the signing ceremony were: Dr Zenon Kohut, Director of the Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies, University of Alberta (Edmonton); Marusia Petryshyn, Director of the Ukrainian Language Education Centre at the Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies, University Alberta (Edmonton); Tania Onyschuk, President of the Ukrainian Canadian School Board, Toronto Branch (Toronto); Dr Roman Petryshyn, Director of the Ukrainian Resource and Development Centre at Grant MacEwan College (Edmonton); Prof Ostap Hawaleshka, President of the Canada Ukraine Foundation was represented by Anna Biscoe (Duncan, BC); and Markian Hlynka represented Dr Denis Hlynka, Acting Director, Centre for Ukrainian Canadian Studies, University of Manitoba (Winnipeg).