Anna Bligh’s plan for iPads in schools

1. iPads for students at Queensland’s Year 7 in High School pilot
schools

We have seen many examples in our state schools of students improving their learning through the use of
technology.

A re‐elected Bligh Government will spend $5.7 million to trial iPads for Year 7 students. The trial will be
undertaken in the 20 Flying Start Pilot schools and will be funded by the Queensland Education Trust.
Under this trial, an iPad 2 with WiFi and 32GB of storage (or equivalent) will be provided to up to 5065
Year 7 students who attend one of the 20 Flying Start pilot schools during the pilot phase (2012‐2014).

These Year 7 students will be in their first year of junior secondary school, and we want to support their
transition with cutting edge technology to support the new learning environment.

The use of tablet devices is skyrocketing, with 330 per cent growth in the last 12 months. It is estimated
that more than 11 million Australians – approximately half the population – will be using a tablet device
by 2016, and the Apple iPad is the clear market leader with 76 per cent of tablet sales last year.
iPad and equivalent tablet devices offer benefits over traditional laptops or netbooks for the classroom
environment, including long battery life, improved interactivity, and higher screen qualities. This will help
give students a flying start to their secondary education.

The pilot schools are
1. Murrumba State Secondary College (from 2012)
2. Alexandra Hills State High School (from 2013)
3. Bray Park State High School (from 2013)
4. Bremer State High School, Ipswich (from 2013)
5. Cleveland District State High School (from 2013)
6. Clifton State High School, Darling Downs (from 2013)
7. Crows Nest State School, Darling Downs (from 2013)
8. Glenden State School, Central Queensland (from 2013)
9. Glenmore High School, Rockhampton (from 2013)
10. Gordonvale State High School (from 2014)
11. Meridan State College, Caloundra (from 2013)
12. Nambour State High School (from 2013)
13. Northern Beaches State High School, Townsville (from 2013)
14. Southport State High School (from 2013)
15. Springfield Central State High School, Ipswich (from 2013)
16. The Gap State High School (from 2013)
17. Toolooa State High School, Gladstone (from 2013)
18. Varsity State College, Gold Coast (from 2013)
19. New high school at Eimeo Road, Mackay, Mackay (from opening in 2013)
20. New high school at Foxwell Road, Coomera (from opening in 2013)

A re‐elected Bligh Government will go to tender on this program within the first 100 days, and use this
process to ensure maximum value for money.

The program will include an allocation for an AppleCare Protection Plan (or equivalent), charging trolleys,
secure storage and a device management solution.

Following completion of the pilot phase, we will then evaluate the educational success of this initiative
with a view to providing iPads to more Queensland school students.

Read more here

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