Establishing a Supportive Public Policy Framework

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Collaborative Policy Development

A whole of government approach based upon collaboration forms the framework for providing e learning opportunities to students in Australia. The vision for this national framework has been articulated in a series of documents starting in 1998 with the newest version resulting from a national consultation process, Australia's Strategic Framework for the Information Economy 2004 – 2006 issued in 2004.

Consultation between the Federal Government and the States and Territories occurs at Ministerial level through the Ministerial Council on Education, Employment, Training and Youth Affairs (MCEETYA) and at official level through the Commonwealth [Federal]-State Joint Planning Committees.

MCEETYA was established in 1994 with membership comprised of Federal, State and Territory ministers as well as New Zealand Ministers responsible for the portfolios of education, employment, training and youth affairs. It is responsible for national co-ordination and policy development across issues involving all levels and sectors of education school education, Vocational Education and Training, and higher education, employment/labor linkages, youth policy and cross-sectoral matters.

Video Clip of Heather Woods

The Commonwealth-State Joint Planning Committees provide advice to MCEETYA on matters such as national agreements on shared agreements and objectives, negotiations on the scope and format of national reporting, coordination and collaboration on national issues, the source and distribution of higher education resources.

Additional collaboration occurs through MCEETYA’s taskforces, the Australian ICT in Education Committee and the MCEETYA ICT in Schools Taskforce (ICTST). The ICTST is a major national collaborative advisory and advocacy group representing all States and Territories, the peak non-government schools associations, and education organizations; providing strategic advice to MCEETYA, it initiates, implements and supports national projects, and advises on the use of ICTs in school education. AICTEC acts as the authoritative national forum providing coordinated policy advice relating to the use of online technologies in education and training.

MCEETYA education and training Ministers are the owners of two national companies which provide support in specific areas. education.au limited is the national education and training ICT organization with responsibility in school, VET and higher education sectors. education.au works across all sectors of education and training, responds to national agendas on education and training and the requests of stakeholders and uses collaboration and networking to provide strategic advantage in education. Schools Ministers are the owners of Curriculum Corporation which has responsibility for development of curriculum and content for schools where there is a common national agenda.

• MCEETYA ICT in Schools Taskforce (PPT)

Key Policy Documents

• MCEETYA Joint Statement on Education and Training in the Information Economy (2000) sets priorities for cooperation during 2001-2003, including effective and affordable access to the Internet for all learners, regardless of their geographic location and promoting collaboration in the development and dissemination of high quality digital educational content, services and applications.
  
  
• The areas for cooperation specified by MCEETYA Ministers were articulated in AICTEC’s Action Plan, Learning for the Knowledge Society: An Education and Training Action Plan for the Information Economy (2000), organized around five interrelated action areas: people, infrastructure, online content, applications and services, policy and organizational framework, and regulatory framework.
  
  
• The MCEETYA ICT Schools Taskforce (formerly the Education Network Australia [EdNA] Schools Advisory Group [SAG]), developed Learning in an Online World: The School Education Action Plan for the Information Economy, which was endorsed by the Ministerial Council for Employment, Education, Training and Youth Affairs (MCEETYA) in March 2000. Annual progress reports provide a summary of key achievements in content, infrastructure and people.
  
  
• In July 2003 AICTEC reported to MCEETYA on actions to meet the commitments of the 2000 Ministerial Statement and identified key priorities for possible future action. A new MCEETYA Joint Statement on Education and Training in the Information Economy has recently been released and can be seen at: www.mceetya.edu.au/pdf/infoeconomy2005.pdf
  
  
• AICTEC’s Business Plan 2004-2005 identifies the following as priority key actions: Copyright, Interoperability, Developing Educational Staff in the Use of ICT, Developing and Promoting Wider Access to Shared Online Content and Services, Student Identity Management, Benchmarking and Domain names.
  
  
• Australia’s Future Using Education Technology, based on national consultations in 2003 and released in late 2004, outlines recommendations to strengthen the national elearning framework by facilitating national collaboration to ensure ICT infrastructure, such as internet access, meets the needs of all education and training sectors; supporting the development of ICT literate professional leaders, teachers and trainers, and an ICT literate workforce for business and industry; developing high-quality online content and services for Australian schools, vocational education and training providers and universities; and enabling older workers to obtain basic computer training to enhance their life choices.
  
  
• Australia's Broadband Connectivity: The Broadband Advisory Group's Report to Government (2003) provides a strategic review of broadband policy. The report calls for the government, in cooperation with State and Territory governments and education stakeholders, to ensure that all schools are connected to the Internet and have access to high-quality email and web browsing services.
  
  
• Australia’s Teachers: Australia’s Future – Advancing Innovation, Science, Technology and Mathematics (2003) estimates an overall shortage of up to 30,000 teachers by the end of the decade if the high rate of teacher resignations and retirements continues unchecked.
  
  

Some Policy Initiatives

In thinking about why Australia is able to implement more nation-wide reforms you have to look at some of the differences in systems and culture between the two countries. In the U.S. we tend to be more driven by the private sector in terms of ICT solutions for schools. Rarely if every have we come to consensus around a vision and then gone to the private sector to charge them with providing a solution for that vision. That is precisely what Australia has done with education.au. I am certainly not suggesting that we have a national agenda whereby the U.S. federal government wholly funds these initiatives, rather I am suggesting that we create a national vision for how ICT can be a transformative agent for education and that further, the federal government act as a coalescing agent for funding of the solutions.

Bob Moore
Chair, CoSN, Board of Directors and Executive Director
Information Technology Services, Blue Valley USD 229
Overland Park, KS

Within a collaborative and consultative framework the Australian Government has initiated or has been the major partner in most of the individual elements of the e-learning landscape now in place. Australian policymakers point to the achievements that have resulted from these national collaborative efforts, such as maximizing funding by reducing duplication, leveraging existing infrastructure, expanding national expertise and maximizing national investment through interoperability.

• Australia’s national education & training agency (PPT)
• Working together building Australia’s knowledge networks (PPT)
• Australia’s National Education & Training Agency (PPT), by Garry Putland, General Manager - education.au

Combination of government as enabler, facilitator, and partner is a good model and should be interpreted within the constraints of the US education system.

John Cherniavsky
Senior Advisor for Research, EHR
National Science Foundation

education.au, a national ICT organization for education and training, develops and manages online services national in scope including:

• EdNA Online, Education Network Australia includes a directory of online evaluated education and training resources accessible through a website, free collaboration and communication tools including threaded web forums, chat rooms and email discussion lists, noticeboards for events and conferences, and a range of education and training newsletters. This service is provided for all Australian education and training sectors.
  
  
  • Working together building Australia’s knowledge networks (PPT)
  • EdNA Online: A Services-oriented approach to supporting E-Learning (PPT)
  
  
  The Education Portal, the online entry point to information and services concerning all aspects and levels of education in Australia.
  
  
  • Domain Names, Search and Open Source Strategy (PPT)
  
  
  
• myfuture, career information services with information about courses, occupations, incomes and labor market, as well as a personalized career exploration tool.
  
  
• The Le@rning Federation is a multi media effort to develop online curriculukm content for schools.
  
  

  Video Clip of Susan Mann

  Video Clip of Susan Mann

  Funded by the Australian and New Zealand governments, as well as the Australian states and territories, The Le@rning Federation is a $73m effort over 5 years pioneering online curriculum content being developed in the form of interactive multimedia learning objects and digitized online resources. It is currently midway through its 5 year cycle. It is managed jointly by education.au and Curriculum Corporation. The 'learning objects' are based on the most recent research into how children learn and how teachers facilitate learning.
  
  By 2006, TLF will have produced a substantial body of learning objects in six curriculum priority areas: science, mathematics, literacy for students at risk, studies of Australia, languages other than English and innovation.
  
  The learning objects developed by The Learning Federation will be delivered to Australian school jurisdictions and meet international standards. Interoperability and the ability of teachers to select and choose the objects are important. Full courses are not offered; rather the emphasis is on providing teachers with supplemental materials that they select and utilize in instruction. In addition, the learning objects are beginning to be used as part of teacher training in universities.
  
  A major issue facing The Le@rning Federation was the issue of copyright and digital rights management. A number of licenses have been agreed to by State and Territories and a digital rights management system is being put into place. Other problems involve providing teachers with training to use the objects, availability of bandwidth and sustainability at the end of the initial five year period.
  
  
• AARNet, The Australian Academic Research Network provides the Australian Research and Education Network (AREN), providing high-capacity, cost-effective Internet services to the higher education and research communities.
  
  

Election 2004: Education as an Issue
One of the most interesting similarities between the political situation of Australia, Britain, New Zealand and the U.S. (the four countries participating in this delegation) is that all four countries have had the same governments in place for a number of years and all are thinking about their vision for the future of ICT in schools (or education technology, as we say in the U.S.). The U.S. and AU just completed national elections and both reelected conservative governments. Britain and NZ, which both have Labor governments, will likely have national elections over the coming year. All four countries are in what might be called “the Third Phase” of ICT in schools, and are all creating new national frameworks and visions on this issue.

Keith Krueger
CEO
CoSN

One interesting contrast between the recent U.S. and Australia national elections is the role that education played in the debate. In the U.S. election, education was not a top tier concern, and education technology was never publicly addressed by either President Bush or Senator Kerry. Conversely in Australia, education and its relation to economic viability was a centerpiece of the campaign, including how ICT could enable that agenda.

In the aftermath of the election, Prime Minister John Howard announced that another $1 billion would go to schools over the next four years for classrooms, libraries and facilities, including computer facilities. In addition, 24 senior technical high will be opened.