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There is an expectation on many areas including Schools, the Education system, Governments and Employers to bridge the digital divide between what parents and individuals can afford and what is expected for students and individuals entering the workforce (Howell, 2013, p. 55) As a teacher this is an issue which needs to be addressed, and to understand the impacts within a classroom. James raises great points and has developed different techniques to guide educators in overcoming the divide.

Check out his book for full details: https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/curtin/detail.action?docID=716130

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There continues to be debate over government funding and the changes to the Gonski reform. Dr Ken Boston said the Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull's proposal, if acted on, would harm children in the country's neediest schools.

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Updated April 01, 2016 15:08:07

One of the key architects behind the Gonski reforms has described the Prime Minister's proposal that states and territories could directly provide all funding for Government schools, while the Commonwealth funded private schools, as "the worst of all possible worlds".

Dr Ken Boston, a former director general of the NSW Department of Education and head of the UK's Curriculum Authority, was a member of the Gonski review panel that presented its findings on school funding in 2011.

He said the Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull's proposal, if acted on, would harm children in the country's neediest schools.

"We wanted to have a seamless funding arrangement for schools across all sectors," he said.

"This new proposal would divide them sharply into non-Government schools and Government schools.

"The states are simply not able to provide the level playing field across sectors that Gonski envisaged."

Ahead of today's Council of Australian Government's (COAG) meeting in Canberra, Mr Turnbull telegraphed his interest in discussing the prospect of handing the states the power to levy a slice of income taxes.

He suggested the states and territories could directly fund public schools and hospitals with the revenue, but is yet to provide concrete detail of how the funds would be divided and what percentage states would receive.

Under the plan, the Federal Government would continue to fund private and independent schools.

'Schools' funding should be needs-based and sector-blind'

Dr Boston argued if the policy was implemented it would undermine two key principles of the Gonski model.

"Firstly, the Commonwealth has a major responsibility for our national education system - all of it - it's in the interests of the nation," he said.

"Secondly, schools' funding should be needs based and sector blind."

Education Minister Simon Birmingham has a different view of Mr Turnbull's proposal.

He told AM it could, " create a situation where the states and territories, if they chose to, could fully implement the Gonski model".

Dr Boston agreed with Mr Turnbull on at least one point, that throwing more money at schools is not necessarily the answer.

"This country is spending more than it ever did on education and our quality of education is declining," he said.

"That's not because we need more money, its because the money we are using at the moment is not being spent strategically.

"It's being spent in schools that don't need it, on things that don't matter."

Topics: federal-government, government-and-politics, education, public-schools, australia

First posted April 01, 2016 15:03:25

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Sharp divide between public, private schools 'the worst of all possible worlds'

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Updated April 01, 2016 15:08:07 One of the key architects behind the Gonski reforms has described the Prime Minister's proposal that states and territories could directly provide all funding for Government schools, while the Commonwealth funded private schools, as "the worst of all possible worlds".

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Broadband is accessed by 62% of households in Australia, with 86% having internet access, however it is distributed unevenly across States and the rate of connectivity is lower in Regional areas compared with cities (Howell, 2013).

Learn how other Countries are tacking the divide: https://search-proquest-com.dbgw.lis.curtin.edu.au/docview/447440121?rfr_id=info%3Axri%2Fsid%3Aprimo

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How Satellite Technology Can Help Close the Digital Divide | Government.Hughes.com

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As high-speed internet service becomes more ubiquitous in American households, some readers might be surprised to find out that a "digital divide"

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How is Digital Inclusion linked to bridging the gap? 

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How is Digital Inclusion linked to bridging the gap? 

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Digital Inclusion is linked to bridging the digital divide. The current generation has moved to interacting through the use of digital technologies, no longer is the internet used only by businesses and those who can afford it. It is now seen as a necessity to manage health and wellbeing, finances, education and connect with family and friends all over the world (Howell, 2013).

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The internet generates extraordinary social, cultural and economic benefits for Australians, but we know that these benefits are not equally shared. Almost three million Australians are not online, and many more are not able to take full advantage of online services. For those who are not connected, the consequences of exclusion are increasing as our essential educational, health, and social services move online.

The Australian Digital Inclusion Index provides our most complete picture yet of Australia's digital divide. As a source of evidence and a guide for action, the Index shows us where digital inclusion is improving and where more needs to be done. The Index breaks digital inclusion down into three critical dimensions: access to data and internet services; affordability; and digital ability - the skills and capacities of users.

The latest 2017 data from the Index shows that across all these dimensions, digital inclusion is increasing in Australia. That is good news. But the Index results also show how the level of digital inclusion among Australians varies greatly. Across regions, and across our social and economic geography, there are groups of Australians who are substantially less connected than others. And in many cases, digital exclusion is linked closely to social exclusion and disadvantage. For some Australians - those who are older, and those on lower incomes - the gaps between them and others are increasing.

In our 2017 report on the Index we take a closer look at some groups of Australians who are less connected than others. This includes Indigenous Australians, for whom the gap has narrowed over the last three years, and Australians with a disability, who still have relatively low digital inclusion. We also looked more closely at mobile only internet users, who have no fixed internet access. Of course, smart phones offer great advantages for users, but there are limits to what people can do with mobiles. Despite all the benefits of mobile internet, levels of digital inclusion are much lower for mobile only users than for Australians overall, with mobile-only consumers linked closely to socio-economic factors such as lower levels of income and employment.

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The Index shows how the digital inclusion challenge is evolving - affordability and digital ability are clearly as important as access. Our findings on affordability may surprise some readers. The Index shows that the value of internet services has improved across Australia, meaning that data-per-dollar has increased each year for consumers over the four years of the survey. It's important to note that when we measure affordability we are not only looking at the cost of data, we are also interested in the proportion of household income dedicated to this service. So, although prices have declined, Australians are using more data, increasing their number of services, and therefore spending more on the internet.

The result reflects the degree to which the internet has become an integral part of everyday life - we are doing more online; we are doing an increasing range of things online; and, in many households, we are connecting with an increasing number of devices. For middle income and better-off Australians, this is unlikely to be a problem. But for lower income households, especially those on fixed incomes, affordability is an important issue, and one we should monitor carefully.

Digital ability is another key area for discussion with the release of the 2017 Index report. What is digital ability? It's what people can actually do online, and therefore how they can benefit from being connected. When we look at digital ability, we are considering people's sense of control and security; their basic skills in accessing information and managing transactions; and their capacity in more complex tasks.

Our report shows that digital ability varies considerably across the population, but is generally improving from a low base. However, it is improving slowly, reflecting the challenges for many Australians in keeping up with technology. We believe that digital ability is a critical area for support and attention because we know that, with assistance, this is a domain where strong improvements are possible. Valuable programs are already making a difference - Telstra's Tech Savvy Seniors is an example.

The value of the Index lies in the assistance it can provide in targeting and shaping future work. It can help guide future policy and action by improving the evidence base and sharpening our focus. As technology drives further transformations in life and work, digital inclusion will become an increasingly important issue for all of us.

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Digital inclusion and Telstra
We believe that everyone - regardless of age, income, ability or location - should enjoy the benefits of being connected to modern communications technology. Telstra has long been focused on addressing digital inclusion and our Everyone Connected programs aim to empower all Australians to enjoy the benefits that new communication technologies bring.

In FY17 we reached more than 63,000 people through our digital literacy programs, including Tech Savvy Seniors training sessions for older Australians and InDigiMob, which is establishing a network of Indigenous digital mentors in remote Northern Territory communities. Through our Access for Everyone program Telstra helps people on a low income or facing financial hardship to stay connected, last financial year, the benefit provided by our programs for vulnerable customers was $87.7 million. Out Telstra Kids Digital Futures has been rolling-out more than 40 digital projects for young people in regional areas right across Australia, to build the skills they need in the future.

Find out more how we're working to address the digital divide and Telstra's Everyone Connected programs at https://exchange.telstra.com.au/digital-inclusion/.

Download the Australia Digital Inclusion Index Report at digitalinclusionindex.org.au/report.

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Digital inclusion: Understanding Australia's digital divide | Telstra Exchange

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The internet generates extraordinary social, cultural and economic benefits for Australians, but we know that these benefits are not equally shared. Almost three million Australians are not online, and many more are not able to take full advantage of online services.

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The Australia Digital Divide Inclusion Index is an initiative developed by Telstra, RMIT University and Roy Morgan to research gaps between digitally included and excluded Australians. The ADII focusses on three different areas representing data from the level of digital access, Affordability and Ability.

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Measuring Australia's digital divide: the Australian digital inclusion index 2017 | APO

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The Australian Digital Inclusion Index (ADII) has been created to measure the level of digital inclusion across the Australian population and to monitor this level over time. Using data collected by Roy Morgan Research, the ADII has been developed through a collaborative partnership between RMIT University, Swinburne University of Technology, and Telstra.

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Digital Divide is a gap between those who have access to computers and the internet and those who don’t. The divide is evident when comparing cities and rural areas, between educated and uneducated, differences in socioeconomic groups and globally with variability in access, prices and performance of different technologies (Howell, 2013).