[Yr7-10it] netbooks being distributed to every year 5 and 6 studentin northern victoria primary schools

Tue Mar 24 09:55:15 EST 2009

thanks for information, Anne

software:
I'd like to see a full list of the software installed, if possible (is there
scratch, etoys, logo,  gamemaker, inform 7, inkscape, opera browser to
display svg animations ?)

wrt the users agreement:
Are students allowed to install their own software? (it would seem difficult
to prevent this)
Are they allowed to install games, any restrictions here? (ditto)

Some worst case scenarios, what happens:
Are there any circumstances where some students would be banned from taking
the computers home? (eg. repeated damage to machines)
What happens when porn or other inappropiate material is found on the
machines?

consultants:
Has AALF  involved in the process up until now? They recently presented in
South australia
http://www.aalf.org/

educational philosophy:
What is the big picture vision? Or is there one? (such visions do exist, eg.
Papert, alan kay, greg whitby - catholic ed NSW has led the redesign of
school architecture, see
http://billkerr2.blogspot.com/2007/01/21st-century-school.html)

teachers:
Has there been resistance? Teachers and the community in general has
different attitudes to technology in general. Some see it as a potentially
liberating force (I'm in that category), others as potential dangerous
(dehumanising, anti social or time wasting), others see computers as just
useful but limited tools). I would expect some resistance or reluctance at
least but I suppose my real question is the perceived balance b/w those 3
broad groups and how that evolves as the project evolves and runs into a
variety problems which may or may not be solved.

cheers

On Tue, Mar 24, 2009 at 8:24 AM, Baird, Anne P <
baird.anne.p at edumail.vic.gov.au> wrote:

>
>
> Hi Bill
>
> I am managing the netbook Trial in our region, Loddon Mallee, Victoria.
> (also Rob Costello's region) We have rolled out 4,400 netbooks to date which
> gives every Grade 6 student and 40% of Grade 5 students access to a netbook.
> All the Grade 6 students are leasing the netbooks from the schools and DEECD
> for $52 per year and will take them from school to home each day therefore
>  having 24/7 access. The netbooks are Lenovo S9s and come with an image that
> includes Vista as the OS, the MS suite of tools, Kahootz and a wide range of
> open source educational software. At the end of 3 years, parents/ students
> will have the option to buy the netbook with their final lease payment of
> $52. A total of $156.
>
> DEECD and the regions are providing a range of professional development
> opportunities for teachers in the trial. We are using a range of research
> strategies to assess and document the trial. There are three other regions
> who are participating in the trial as well. With the other two country
> regions  trialling with Grade 5 students. Our netbooks will go with the
> students to secondary college next year so we have the added challenge of
> supporting the Secondary teachers as well.
>
> I hope this helps and let me know if there is anything else you would like
> to know.
>
>
> Anne Baird
> 1-to-1 Netbook Project Manager
> Loddon Mallee Region
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: yr7-10it-bounces at edulists.com.au on behalf of Costello, Rob R
> Sent: Mon 3/23/2009 10:23 PM
> To: Year 7 - 10 Information Technology Teachers' Mailing List
> Subject: RE: [Yr7-10it] netbooks being distributed to every year 5 and 6
> studentin northern victoria primary schools
>
> HI Bill
>
> its been on the cards for ages and seems finally official
>
>
> http://www.eduweb.vic.gov.au/edulibrary/public/ict/netbooks/netbook-parent-brochure.pdf
>
> i've seen the models  (or at least the same model and software image that
> one of the schools here had prepurchased) - Lenovo - i don't know the exact
> brand - 1.6 Ghz chip i think
> running vista and seemed suprisingly responsive
>
> afraid i'd choose them, and the software image, over the XO / OLPC sugar
> environment that might have indirectly influenced the design of the netbook
> market
>
> cheers
>
> rob
>
>  _____
>
> From: yr7-10it-bounces at edulists.com.au on behalf of Bill Kerr
> Sent: Mon 3/23/2009 12:04 AM
> To: Year 7 - 10 Information Technology Teachers' Mailing List
> Subject: [Yr7-10it] netbooks being distributed to every year 5 and 6
> studentin northern victoria primary schools
>
>
> netbooks being distributed to every year 5 and 6 student in northern
> victoria primary schools
>
> press release
>
> http://candybroadcountry.blogspot.com/2009/02/hi-tech-mini-netbooks-to-boost-learning.html
>
> brochure to parents (pdf)
>
> http://www.eduweb.vic.gov.au/edulibrary/public/ict/netbooks/netbook-parent-brochure.pdf
>
> Anyone have more information about this? I'm preparing a talk about the
> potential of netbooks for my school staff and for the CEGSA conference in
> July (I'll post my notes somewhere in due course, still at the research
> stage)
>
> --
> Bill Kerr
> http://billkerr2.blogspot.com/
> _______________________________________________
> http://www.edulists.com.au  <http://www.edulists.com.au/> - FAQ,
> resources, subscribe, unsubscribe
> Year 7 - 10 IT Mailing List kindly supported by
> http://www.vcaa.vic.edu.au  <http://www.vcaa.vic.edu.au/> - Victorian
> Curriculum and Assessment Authority and
> http://www.vitta.org.au  <http://www.vitta.org.au/> - VITTA Victorian
> Information Technology Teachers Association Inc
>
>
> Important - This email and any attachments may be confidential. If received
> in error, please contact us and delete all copies. Before opening or using
> attachments check them for viruses and defects. Regardless of any loss,
> damage or consequence, whether caused by the negligence of the sender or
> not, resulting directly or indirectly from the use of any attached files our
> liability is limited to resupplying any affected attachments. Any
> representations or opinions expressed are those of the individual sender,
> and not necessarily those of the Department of Education and Early Childhood
> Development.
> _______________________________________________
> http://www.edulists.com.au - FAQ, resources, subscribe, unsubscribe
> Year 7 - 10 IT Mailing List kindly supported by
> http://www.vcaa.vic.edu.au - Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority
> and
> http://www.vitta.org.au  - VITTA Victorian Information Technology Teachers
> Association Inc
>
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: http://www.edulists.com.au/pipermail/yr7-10it/attachments/20090324/c62a2297/attachment.html