I do believe that certain training programs can be offered online as this will advantage people in remote communities, however sometimes people in remote communities will have different safety needs or deal with different situations than those that can be offered within the confines of an on-line course. This is why I selected Artic Response Canada LTD for this post. They offer an interesting alternative to on-line training for remote areas: instead of providing generic resources or bringing workers to the larger centers, they travel to the remote area.
Artic Response Canada LTD, although offering some of their training online, believes strongly in person to person training. Over 70% of their training occurs on-site and in client communities. Their strong belief in person to person training stems from the notion that situtations you may encounter in remote areas differ greatly from one another and from any textbook. A generic eLearning class would not suffice to cover all possible situations and creating very specific eLearning resources are not feasible. This company believes that training must take into consideration the environmental factors and actual conditions the worker will experience. Also some of their training programs simply have components that cannot be learned online such as firearm handling and artic winter survival (which consists of a 3 day, 2 night survival scenario in which participants need to balance priorities and watch for the physical and mental wellbeing of their colleagues). These are things (teamwork, dealing with panic and group mentality) that are very difficult to convey through e-learning courses. Furthermore, many of the courses offered are followed by exams for official certification. Online training might increase the chances of cheating (as mentioned in the practical nature of the material page in the OER) and result in unqualified people in life or death situations. Another reason why this company prefers the person-to-person training is that they can base the training on the companies equipment (which again will vary greatly from area to area) and ensure that the companies specific practices and equipment follow safety guidelines. Being in a remote area makes it difficult to access training, but it also makes it difficult to verify a companies compliance to safety norms, Artic Response Canada LTD. offers a solution to both these issues through on-site person-to-person training.