Report 19

Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in Education

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Key findings

  • DoE has a vision for ICT in the public education system and knows what ICT it will deliver to schools. It has four priorities supported by key projects to deliver the vision. However, DoE has not developed implementation plans or strategies for its vision and is unable to show how it is prioritising projects or measuring progress to achieving its vision.
    • DoE has not developed a strategy or plan to guide what individual projects it needs to achieve its ICT Vision 2014-2016 and when these projects need to happen. At the time of our audit, DoE had not developed a draft vision for beyond 2016. Sixty percent of our survey respondents considered that DoE does not clearly communicate to schools about future obligations and requirements for ICT. Without an implementation plan or strategy, DoE is not able to measure progress against its ICT Vision
    • DoE plans to provide schools with an SOE. The SOE is a key project under the ‘Deliver and Expand Enabling Infrastructure’ priority of the ICT Vision. Rollout of the SOE began with 100 schools in 2003 but progress has been slow. Rollout of version 4 of the SOE started in 2008. By July 2016, 97% of all schools were on SOE version 4.1 or higher (41% on 4.1 and 56% on 4.5). Two percent were still operating on EDNET and DoE has allowed 8 schools (1%) to continue running their own networks. These 8 schools represent 11% of all secondary students in WA. DoE plans to roll out the SOE to all participating schools by September 2016. All schools need to be operating on the SOE for the full benefits and efficiencies to be realised.

Read more – DoE has a vision for ICT in schools but achievement is unclear

  • Schools operating on the SOE and using SOE compliant devices can draw on DoE’s Customer Service Centre (CSC) for network and administration support. The CSC acts as a Service Desk for schools and Departmental staff and is based at the DoE East Perth offices. CSC staff do not provide onsite support for schools or deal with hardware issues and faults. Our survey showed that schools are generally (76%) satisfied with the quality of service desk support provided by the CSC.
  • Schools are responsible for planning and managing their own ICT. However, small schools, particularly primary and regional schools, are at a relative disadvantage. This is because DoE’s devolved management model, which saw the introduction of one-line budgets and student centred funding, does not fully recognise that schools have varying levels of access to ICT expertise. Schools that lack internal expertise or are unable to fund ICT support are more likely to make poor ICT planning and investment decisions and be less able to ensure their ICT is operating reliably and used well.

Read more – All schools need to plan and manage their own ICT

  • Slow and unreliable internet is an ongoing issue for the majority of schools with 74% of respondents to our survey saying that it affected their use of ICT. Teachers advised that it was a factor in students becoming distracted and disruptive.
    • Schools and DoE staff advised that increasing the numbers of devices, the use of wireless internet and online student testing impacted bandwidth capacity and affected internet speed.
    • DoE is progressing a number of projects, worth around $20.2 million, to address these issues. DoE plans to complete these projects by April 2017. These include increasing bandwidth capacity at 192 schools across the state and providing additional wireless capability to 551 schools to allow more students to connect at the same time. However, some issues are out of DoE’s control. For example, the availability of telecommunications infrastructure for remote and regional schools limits what DoE can provide.
  • In 2014, DoE returned to its previous device to student ratio, set in 2000. This resulted in a ratio change from 1:1 to 1:5 for secondary students and 1:10 for primary students:
    • This is a significant decline from the actual 2008 ratio of 1:2.9 for secondary students and 1:4.5 for primary students and is inconsistent with DoE’s vision of technology rich classrooms.
    • The 2015 Computer Census data shows that most primary and secondary schools meet the target ratios based on the total number of devices in use. However, if devices over 4 years old were excluded, then 7 secondary schools and 26 primary schools would not meet DoE’s target ratios. DoE advised that there has been ‘continued growth in the number of devices being purchased by schools’.
  • The average ICT device in schools is getting older. The 2015 Computer Census showed that 28% of all student devices were over 4 years old, compared to 18% in 2012. DoE requires schools to work to a 4 year replacement cycle, but responsibility rests with individual schools to have long-term planning and to prioritise funds for replacement. Computers, laptops and tablets are more likely to be slow and less reliable as they age and are generally considered obsolete after 4 years. This means students may not have reliable devices for use in their studies.
  • The aging of devices is affecting secondary schools the most:
    • In 2012, secondary schools owned 7,366 devices that were older than 4 years but by 2015, the number had grown to 26,589. Funding through the National Secondary Schools Computer Fund (NSSCF), which started in 2008 and ended in 2012, led numerous secondary schools to purchase many devices in a single year. Those devices are now approaching or exceeding 4 years old and will need replacement if schools are to maintain their device to student ratios. We found secondary schools did not have plans in place to allow them to maintain their current ratios in line with the increasing level of obsolescence.
    • Primary schools are increasing the number of new student devices while the number of older devices has remained relatively consistent from 15,530 in 2012 to 17,640 in 2015. Primary schools received additional State funding through the Primary Schools Device Rebate, announced in December 2015 which provided dollar for dollar investment to eligible primary schools totalling $20 million. Supporting and eventually replacing these devices is a planning and resourcing issue for schools now and into the future.
  • DoE collects annual Computer Census data from each school. However, this data is not publicly available to enable schools, parents and teachers to make comparisons against other schools and informed decisions about device replacement.

Read more – Internet speed, bandwidth and aging devices impact the use of ICT in schools

Page last updated: August 17, 2016

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