Science North receives funding to develop CanCode 3.0

The Government of Canada is investing in Science North to engage students and teachers across Northern Ontario and in First Nation communities in coding and digital skills programming through CanCode 3.0. After four successful years of Science North delivering CanCode programming to over 100,000 students and teachers across the region and beyond, the Government of Canada is providing Science North with $2.5 million to continue furthering its educational reach.

CanCode is a Government of Canada program that aims to equip Canadian youth with the skills they need to be prepared for further studies including advanced digital skills and science, technology, engineering, and math courses. CanCode support also provides thousands of Canadian teachers with the tools needed to educate Canadian children and youth on these skills.

Over the next three years, Science North’s CanCode programming will provide bilingual, hands-on learning experiences to 70,000 students, including 22,650 Indigenous students. More than 1,000 teachers will be engaged in curriculum-linked experiential learning workshops, including 300 educators from First Nations schools. An additional 5,000 teachers will have access to online resources.

Science North’s previous CanCode programming reached 95,000 students, including more than 24,000 Indigenous students and youth from rural, northern, and remote communities. Students were introduced to coding, computational skills, robotics programming and other digital skills. Over 11,700 teachers participated in educator workshops and accessed online resources.

CanCode 3.0 will develop and deliver new hands-on, in-person and virtual programming experiences in more than 160 communities across Northern Ontario. Programs will provide unique opportunities for girls, youth with disabilities, Indigenous youth, and youth in rural, remote and Northern communities to build digital skills and be exposed to information technology career pathways.

About Science North

Science North is Northern Ontario’s most popular tourist attraction and an educational resource for children and adults across the province. Science North maintains the second – and eighth- largest science centres in Canada. Science North’s attractions include a science centre, IMAX® theatre, digital Planetarium, butterfly gallery, special exhibits hall, and Dynamic Earth: Home of the Big Nickel. Science North, in partnership with Laurentian University, offers North America’s first and only comprehensive Science Communication program, a joint Master’s and Graduate Diploma program. As part of its mandate, Science North provides science experiences throughout Northern Ontario including outreach to schools and festivals, summer science camps and more, and has a permanent base in Thunder Bay providing outreach to the Northwest. Science North is an agency of the Government of Ontario. For information, visit sciencenorth.ca.

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