Download DOCX file of Broadband Enabled Education and Skills

Broadband-Enabled Education and Skills Services
Programme
October 2013
What is the Government doing?
The Broadband-Enabled Education and Skills Services Programme is demonstrating how
high-speed broadband can increase the education, training, and skills development
opportunities for Australians – no matter where they live, work or study.
The programme aims to improve online access to education, training and skills services that
will equip Australia to respond to emerging skills and teaching shortages. It will improve the
delivery of skills development programmes and expand the reach of existing education and
training services into rural and remote locations.
The availability of ‘anywhere/anytime’ access made possible by the NBN, together with the
efficiencies achieved using online and interactive education, mean education and training
can be delivered in new and innovative ways to students, learners, and trainees.
The Australian Government is providing funding of $24.6 million (GST excl) to 13 projects
that are trialling the delivery of innovative education and training practices and take
advantage of the high-speed broadband connectivity available through the NBN.
Teachers and students participating in the trials are being provided with access to a wide
range of education materials and resources. Some early examples include: medical students
accessing from home virtual versions of pathology microscope slides before their practical
classes; high school science students conducting practical experiments by remotely
controlling Mars Rover replica robots at the Powerhouse Museum; and Asian studies
students in Australian high schools participating in cultural exchange activities through live
video-conference sessions with students and teachers in Asian schools.
Students in participating regional or remote schools are receiving interactive lessons or
instruction via live video streaming from specialist teachers or trainers who are not available
to them locally. Initial lessons are being delivered in a diverse range of subjects including
nanoscience and astrophysics, interactive gaming development and specialist musical
instrument master classes.
The high-speed broadband connectivity of the NBN is providing workers with greater access
to lifelong learning and professional and skills development in the workplace, as well as
helping improve links between learners, education, training and skills providers, employers,
and parents. By way of example, TAFE students in the Hunter region of NSW who are limited
in their ability to attend a TAFE campus due to family or work commitments or time and
travel constraints, are trialling self-paced learning in skills shortage occupations. These
students are working through on-line course content supplemented by live videoconference tuition from teachers and support from fellow students.
The funded projects are primarily focused on NBN early-release sites and are
complementary to the education trials being undertaken through the Digital Regions
Initiative.
Why is the Government doing it?
The Australian Government is committed to supporting the long-term productivity and
economic growth of Australia through fundamental reforms to education and training and
through the establishment of Australia as a leading digital economy.
The Broadband-Enabled Education and Skills Services Programme is an important initiative
under the National Digital Economy Strategy (NDES), which sets out a vision for Australia to
realise the benefits of the NBN and position Australia as a leading digital economy by 2020.
Who will benefit?
Australians in education, in training, those seeking professional and skills development, and
those pursuing lifelong learning opportunities can all potentially benefit from the
programme. This programme will especially deliver benefits to people in regional and
remote locations and those who find it difficult to attend classes because of their work
commitments or family responsibilities. The programme will also assist teachers and parents
to support students’ learning outcomes.
The Projects
The thirteen (13) projects being funded are:
Organisation
Project Title
Monash University
Virtual School of Emerging Sciences
Project
funding (GST
exclusive)
$1,882,820
Sydney Opera House
From Bennelong Point to the Nation
$715,200
Australian Youth
Orchestra
Association of
Independent Schools of
New South Wales
University of New South
Wales
AYO Digital Connection Trial
$1,574,000
Independent Schools in Australia –
Transforming the Education Digital Supply
Chain
$3,044,979
Education 2020: enabling learning in science,
engineering and mathematics
$2,896,538
Gordon Institute of TAFE
University of New South
Wales
University of Wollongong
Metropolitan South
Institute of TAFE
TAFE NSW Hunter
Institute
Bendigo Senior
Secondary College
University of New
England
University of South
Australia
Remote delivery of school based traineeships
to regional and rural students in Victoria
The BEST Network – A Network for
Biomedical Education, Skills and Training
The University of Wollongong Graduate
School of Medicine Telehealth Skills Training
and Implementation Project
Diabetes Health and Wellness Programme
eLinks: enabling TAFE training
Victorian Virtual Learning Network
Asia ConneXions utilising HD
videoconferencing
Digital Enterprise: Pathways to Education and
Employment for Young People with
Disabilities Programme
$968,898
$3,000,000
$806,757
$3,046,804
$2,437,011
$739,400
$507,593
$2,974,267
Further information:
For further detail about the Broadband-Enabled Education and Skills Services programme
visit www.deewr.gov.au/Schooling/Pages/nbneducationandskills.aspx