Articles

The Library of Things

The vision of American industrialist Andrew Carnegie was to fund and build many public libraries throughout the world. His goal was to “bring books and information to the people.” Libraries have now grown beyond loaning just books to include movies, music, and even e-books but Carnegie’s original vision of sharing resources remains relevant. Although many… Read more »

Fluff – What’s a Light Course?

There was a bit of controversy on the AU Facebook page this week. It is something, I believe, every student does. Though perhaps the wording is what caused a kerfuffle. A student asked for advice on lighter courses to balance out some more demanding courses. As distance education students we balance a lot in our… Read more »

Editorial – Affordance

The big news this week is what happened in Ontario. With their most recent budget, they’re making it so that people with a low income will have a much easier time getting an education. Families with an income of less than 50k will have an average tuition of free. More importantly for AU, they’re also… Read more »

Presidential Interview – AU’s Interim President, Part II

Student Scott D. Jacobsen managed to get some time with Athabasca University’s interim president Mr. Peter MacKinnon. Scott interviewed him over a wide set of topics with the president, and the result is this three part interview that we’re happy to present in The Voice Magazine. You can find the first part here. Last year,… Read more »

The Girl in the Pink Sweater

I see this girl, wearing the pink sweater. I look at the freckles and big eyes and remember growing up in an average small town and in an average family. That seemed like such a long time ago, but even now some of those memories of what she went through make my muscles tense and… Read more »

Swimming in Scholarships

Nothing can brighten a student’s day like free money. Being awarded a scholarship feels a little like winning a lottery. Having that inflow of cash can help counter the outflow of tuition, textbooks, and invigilation fees that accompany a postsecondary education. The best part: a scholarship, unlike a loan, does not need to be paid… Read more »

Trudeau, The World Economic Forum, & Athabasca University

Athabasca University (AU) is in line with the future of education and the future economy. The future of education?credentials, knowledge, and skills. The future of the economy?human capital with creativity, education, and experience. Human capital investments are an issue for students coming out of university, and employers looking for suitable candidates or employees. A salient… Read more »

Editorial – Way Too Much to Do

I can’t believe I’ve managed to get this far already. You’ll notice this is an extra big issue, in part because in addition to our usual goodness, we’ve got a Council Connection, the article on the Voice Reader Survey that I promised (complete with pretty pictures), an interview with none other than the President of… Read more »