Flexible online learning to enable young Saudi Arabians to train for a career in aviation

Global learning technology leader, @D2L, today (26 Aug) announced that @AviationAust Riyadh College (AARC) has chosen its learning platform, Brightspace, to provide students in Saudi Arabia with engaging and flexible online learning.

AARC was founded to offer education and training in aviation maintenance and engineering to young Saudi Arabians seeking a career in the industry. It draws on the applied practical training expertise of Aviation Australia to produce skilled, motivated and dependable technicians. All courses across its three-year training programme, which combines academic study with on-the-job training, will be provided to AARC’s 4,000 students through the Brightspace platform.

The college had previously supported remote study for its students through a combination of tools, but this was a challenge when all learning moved online in response to the COVID-19 emergency. In time for the new academic year, AARC sought a feature-rich platform to bring all learning into one place, be engaging and easy for students to use and be suitable for access from a range of devices. It was also essential that content could be migrated from the incumbent solution to the new platform.

“Training excellence is at the heart of what we do, enabling young Saudi Arabians to pursue their ambitions and train for a career in aviation,” says Eric Smiley, Head of Curriculum for the Foundation program at AARC. “Due to ongoing uncertainty surrounding COVID-19, we need to ensure that we are in a position to facilitate an effective and engaging online learning environment for the health and safety of students, instructors and their families. Brightspace brings our online educational solutions into one engaging platform, so we are extremely pleased to start the new academic year with the new platform.”

The Brightspace platform will support all foundation and vocational courses AARC offers to students pursuing future careers in aviation.

“AARC’s courses provide technical training with very particular needs for students preparing for a career in the competitive aviation industry,” says Mr. Rosales, Regional Manager, EMEA at D2L. “Organisations everywhere are reevaluating their online learning capabilities due to events this year, and we are seeing increased demand from those seeking a more reliable, comprehensive solution. We are proud that AARC has chosen D2L to help it deliver learning in line with its digital strategy; the platform will support both students for whom technology-enabled learning is a new experience as well as those familiar with learning online as they progress through their studies.”

Aviation Australia Riyadh College (AARC) is a joint venture between Aviation Australia and Shamal Investments Saudi Arabia. Aviation Australia in Brisbane (AA) is a world-class registered training organisation which was established by the Queensland State Government in 2001 to support the development and growth of aviation and aerospace industries in both the Australian and international markets by providing applied practical training in aviation maintenance and engineering. AARC takes pride in training excellence, offering education and training to young Saudi Arabians seeking a career in the aviation industry. AARC is the international operator of International Aviation Technical College at Riyadh (IATC) where it aims to provide the aviation market with skilled, motivated, and dependable technicians.