Another broken promise???

[catsnknots]

Students lose right to free laptop as Federal Government scraps Digital Education Revolution

http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/queensland/students-lose-right-to-free-laptop-as-federal-governme...

In the 2007 election Howard offered a tax refund when you bought your child a new laptop for school... Rudd countered that offer and said he would give each child a free laptop....

Rudd also said he will give you a supplement to help you pay for school costs instead of the tax refund that Howard was giving when you spent money upfront on your own child. 

Now we will lose both of those policies... 

I hope they do go back to the education tax refund when you spend your own money but I doubt that will happen... 

[lakeland27]

The Federal Government has indicated it will not continue funding the high school laptop program for years 9 to 12 students.

Almost 1 million computers have been issued since 2008 as part of Labor's Digital Education Revolution, but funding for the scheme is set to run out in June 2013.

Year 9 students will still receive their laptops at the start of the school year.

Federal School Education Minister Peter Garrett says the Government provided the upfront investment and the states must now pay their fair share.

"The Commonwealth always said we would get this going by providing the opportunity for high school students to have access to a laptop. We've delivered on that commitment," he said.

"We'll negotiate with the states on where that can be taken, but certainly there's an expectation we'll need to work that through with the states."

"We've discharged our commitment and we've done it successfully."

Some high school principals say it is disappointing.

NSW Secondary Principals Council president Lila Mularczyk says allowing students to bring their own devices is part of the answer, but it needs financial support.

"Technology can never be a one-off investment and you have to sustain it with particular infrastructure, with professional learning, with curriculum development and with learning devices and they will differ as time changes and that is moving far more readily than we can predict," she said.

But the head of Catholic Schools in Sydney's west agrees the program should not be renewed.

Greg Whitby says schools should not be relying on governments for the funding.

"More money, more devices doesn't equal better education, better schooling per se," he said.

Mr Whitby says schools should allow students to bring their own technology and ensure no-one misses out.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-02-02/federal-government-set-to-end-school-laptops-scheme/4497572

[cherry*135]

What do you mean we will lose BOTH these policies? School kids bonus is enough per child to buy them a basic laptop.

The Education Tax Refund was replaced by:

School Kids Bonus:

 It is simple: there’s no need to collect receipts or claim it through your tax.

Each year, eligible families and students will receive:

$410 a year for each primary student ($205 paid in January and $205 paid in July)

$820 a year for each secondary student ($410 paid in January and $410 paid in July).

[cherry*135]

From the link in the OP

Federal School Education Minister Peter Garrett said money provided under the National Plan for School Improvement would help fund new technology equipment, and called on Queensland to sign up to the Gonski model.

"The extra funding . . . will be a permanent feature of the new funding system so schools would no longer need to rely on grants or short-term programs," he said.

[catsnknots]

Both Policies I mean the new computers and the schoolkids bonus... both will be gone and there will be no help. 

I was not for the giving every kid a laptop policy... I saved and bought my kids their pc's and laptops... so should other parents.. and I did that on a single parents income so if I could do it so can others. I did however appreciate the education tax refund. I thought that was the appropriate way to go. 

If you think that Gonski will pay for everything then you are dreaming... parents will still need to buy items for their kids and many parents would still appreciate a little bit of help. 

[newstart2380]

I have a friend who works at a high school as a cleaner, she sees first hand the way some high school "ferels" treat these free laptops.

She has seen them used as missiles and thrown, drinks spilled on the keyboards making them useless and even sold to people outside the schools by the kids. They are just replaced no questions asked and it keeps going on.

Peter Garrett made a mess of the batts installation scheme and he (as the responsible minister) has fallen down on his responsibility for this scheme as well.

He should go back to gyrating and screaming on stage and leave politics alone. 

So I think stop giving out these free PC's and stop building these unnecessary school halls (build classrooms instead to replace the demountables).

[cherry*135]

Why are school halls unecessary?

Our local high school has had $m's spent on it in recent years, all the demountables have been replaced.

[*crikey*mate*]

 parents will still need to buy items for their kids and many parents would still appreciate a little bit of help. 

isn't that what parents are supposed to do?

Sure, of course the majority of parents would appreciate "a bit of help", but should it really be an expectation of the Gov to do a parent's job?

....................................

Question about the lapTop program - (I know hardly anything about it) but from reading LL's post up there, it reads to me that it is only being scrapped for years 10 - 12, but year 9 kids will still get their lap tops?

Is that right?

If that's the case, I agree with the new "system". The kids currently in grades 10 to 12 would have already benefited from the roll out (either directly or indirectly ie the school using the funds to upgrade the infrastructure of their current IT systems, educate staff in the use of new technologies, etc etc etc etc)

So now, it's the kids coming through and entering high school that will benefit and carry their lap tops through until grade 12.

I think that's fair enough, and surely a lap top can last a school kid for 4 years of high school, it's not like they have to launch rocket ships with them etc....

Do I understand the updated policy correctly?

[lakeland27]

a lot of victoria's schools look great now, unlike the dickensian workhouse atmosphere of the Howard era. there's no comparison. without those computers Rudd/Gillard rolled out hundreds of thousands of Australian schoolchildren would have missed out completely on essential skills.

another lost generation is not what this country needs. Politicians of the right lack any real vision (apart from the usual elitist self-interest) they wont last long, Australians will find them out. even the most challenged folks catch on eventually.

[*crikey*mate*]

Why are school halls unecessary?

Our local high school has had $m's spent on it in recent years, all the demountables have been replaced.

Some of them were, and whilst I think the program was good in theory, I really don't think that its application was managed very well.

Our school already had a perfectly fine MPH and a Library (what the grants were for). Our Business manager filled in the paper work to the required standards, applied and we received another $3 million to build a 2nd MPH.

I'm not complaining at all - for us it is totally awesome (we actually added more of our own funds to it and added significantly)

I know of several school's whose principals/business managers etc either didn't bother to apply or didn't/couldn't fill out the reqwuired paper work, so even though they would have benefioted greatly from either building, they never got one.

I also know of two structures which are completely useless. One, because of the limited funds could not be altered from the cookie cutter plans the public schools were forced to use, so instead of having a blank wall on the side of the building that gets direct sun and heat, they have big windows, making the hall a sweat shop for the kids in summer after about 9am... Needless to say, it doesn't get used very much.

Another school, because of its remote location, costs were a little higher, so whilst they have this fabulous new $3 million dollar hall (for a school with about 40 kids grades prep to 7), it has no electricity connected to it, or running water, no pathways etc. The school didn't have the funds to upgrade their current infrastructure, and despite intense petitioning from the school principal, they were not allowed to change from the cookie cutter version in order to make it smaller, to divert some funds towards the infrastructure to make it useable.

So it too sits there, unused.