17 September 2016

Labor promises tablets for Year 7-12 public school students

| Charlotte
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Using a tablet in the classroom. Photo: iStock

Tablet devices would be provided to all new Year 7 and Year 11 public school students in the ACT from 2018 under a re-elected ACT Labor Government, at a cost of $17.2 million over the first four years.

Labor estimates that more than 6,000 Canberra students would be provided with tablets in the first year of the program.

Devices would made available under a leasing arrangement, allowing for upgrades as required.

Education spokeswoman Yvette Berry did not reveal whether the tablets would be Apple iPads or devices running the Android or Windows operating systems, but said there would be consistency of devices.

“[This] will not only provide equity between students, but also provide a consistent platform for education applications, enhancing the curriculum and making life easier for teachers,” Ms Berry said.

“This commitment will save many parents the stress of saving for these devices and mean there’s no need to worry about choosing the right one for their children.”

Canberra public school already have access to high-speed Wifi.

“This is the next logical step in technology investment for our students,” Ms Berry said.

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So Tuggeranong Public Schools have gone backwards on all measures (NAPLAN, etc) due to funding cuts and school closures by ACT Labor over the last decade. So instead of doing something to fix this, Yvette Berry decides to give all kids across the ACT a Tablet computer???????

Why not target the money and IT tools to kids from low socio economic areas or those identified as struggling across all of the ACT. This is vote buying at its best and lack of Policy design and effective program implementation at its worst.

Absolutely idiotic – a solution in search of a problem. Imagine how much could be done by putting that money into more teachers.

Labor falling for Apple’s propaganda (I guarantee they’ll be Apple devices), as usual. Oooh! look! Shiny things!

Masquara said :

How about just providing tablets for children whose parents can’t afford them? And for children who don’t already have one?

Makes sense. Cheaper and more effective overall.
You’ll never get a job in government with that attitude.
Good for you!

wildturkeycanoe7:14 am 18 Sep 16

How to please –
Public Servants? How about a tram to get them to and from work?
The sick? We’ll erect another hospital building and upgrade the ED at the other one! More dental vans and nurses too and a preventative health coordinator – I wonder who has their bum on that seat already?.
Young people? Perhaps some $85million for upgrading school buildings.
Parents? A free laptop for every kid going to high school to ease the cost of education plus free immunisations for babies. BTW, a tablet is far cheaper than the cost of catching a bus to school for a year, so this promise is not really a strong selling point whereas free school buses would help parents buy tablets AND ease the burden of raising kids.
Indigenous? A new health clinic.
Have we missed anybody yet? They’ve neglected motorists, the elderly and welfare recipients so there needs to be more incentive to win the election. Plenty of time left for promises.

I was about to see what other promises have been made but their website – http://www.actlabor.org.au/plan – is full of blank pages. That is a bit average for a political party, to put up a website that is incomplete or under construction. Is that how they are running the territory? Charge ahead with stuff without making sure everything is in order before letting the public in on what’s going on? Sounds just like the light rail stage 2, post it up as an election promise before filling in the blanks on the feasibility study.

Southerly_views10:35 pm 17 Sep 16

We have heard all these promises before. iPads were provided for classes at our children’s government school but these were slowly withdrawn as they were broken or faulty and never replaced. A number also disappeared without trace.

The school then demanded last year that all students provide their own laptop or chromebook with almost everyone now using them between home and school for their assignments and homework.

The horse has bolted – divert the election driven funding to real school needs.

How about funding more teachers instead?

How about just providing tablets for children whose parents can’t afford them? And for children who don’t already have one?

Yet another expensive solution to an unidentified problem.

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