Julia crosses her heart on computers for kids

I was watching the great debate last night and during her closing speech, Julia mentioned, in a long list of promises, that she would continue working to get computers to every child in the country. The fact that this statement was included in her final, best of the best, list of important issues that she felt she needed to be broadcast to the nation, is a good sign.

The importance of bridging the digital divide and bringing as many students as possible up to a level where they can learn on and be confident with new technologies is becoming more and more clear to Australia's politicians and the education sector. My investigations have helped me realise just how vital closing the digital divide is in helping disadvantaged students catch up to their peers. Not only for their immediate educational interests, but for their future opportunities.

I appreciate the fact that this issue is in the public eye enough to warrant mention is our red-headed PM's final words last night. I hope that the promise is followed through on, and I hope that programs like OLPC are embraced by the government and used as an important vehicle in overcoming the digital divide.

And thats about it!

City-rural divide hits computer literacy

The Sydney Morning Herald published this article earlier this year reporting on recent figures regarding the digital literacy levels of Australian students.

The most prominent (and relevant) finding of the study (conducted by The Australian Council for Educational Research) found that "the percentage of year 6 students attaining a proficient standard was 61 per cent in metropolitan areas, 48 per cent in rural areas and 38 per cent in remote regions".

This figure highlights the fact that the digital divide is still a significant obstacle for education in Australia. The report found that, overall, digital literacy levels had improved Australia wide since 2005. However, the fact that students in rural and remote areas are still performing at a lower level than their urban peers shows that measures need to be taken to try and narrow the significant gap in digital literacy levels that currently exist.

The article recognises the importance of this area of education, especially in providing students with vital skills for their future workplaces. The ubiquitous use of ICT in Australia's modern workplaces means that students will need to have proficient computer skills to survive in the modern workforce.

Parliamentary speech on the OLPC organisation

This is kinda long and poorly read by the Member for Solomon (N.T.) but it gives more information on the OLPC organisation and their quest. The XO laptop computer that they are distributing is ideal for use in remote communities (due to its hardiness and usability) and is designed to improve digital literacy as well as provide a fun tool for acheiving other educational outcomes.

OLPC are looking for government funding in order to roll out large scale distributions of the laptops to remote communities around Australia. This seems like an awesome initiative to me. The computers are cheap, hardy, made specifically for the conditions in which they'll be used. They seems really user friendly too. They have internet access. The works! Obviously there will be obstacles in getting something like this out to everyone who needs it, but all in all it seems that OLPC are doing a great job of making things happen in reducing the digital divide. Hats off!

Another great clip about the OLPC initiative

This is nice because it has some interview pieces from teachers involved in the communities targeted. You also get to see a fair few shots of the kids using the laptops. They seem really easy to use and one of the teachers interviewed actually reports that he was suprised and impressed by how quickly the kids picked up on how to use the computers.

Laptops in remote communities

Here we go. This is what I'm talking about! This SBS news piece pretty much sums up what I'm interested in for my second research analysis. The issue of providing ICT to disadvantaged children (financially, geographically, or both) in order to help their digital literacy and overall learning. This news piece reports on a fantastic initiative that will hopefully go a long way to reducing the digital divide for these students.

Access to ICT for financially/geographically disadvantaged Australians

This article on the digital divide for financially disadvantaged families in Australia provides some insight into the extent of the gap entering the 21st century.

The data (from 2002) shows that less than a third of the families surveyed (low income families) had internet access at home and three-quarters of the students surveyed did not use the internet at home. This is compared to almost half of the corresponding Australia wide population using the net in their homes.

The article stresses the importance of home internet access in improving student performance. I would say that level of importance has only increased since 2002 with many assignments/projects in schools these days requiring extensive internet use for successful completion.

In addition, having access to ICT at home will impact on studetns' digital literacy levels. This will potentially give certain students immediate advantages/disadvantages over other students in classrooms that integrate ICT in learning.

Thinking about my earlier idea of ICT access in remote areas, I guess that if all students in a given community have restricted access to ICT then no one has any advantage over anyone else in the way mentioned above. However, looking beyond that specific rural/remote community, these students as a whole may be disadvantaged when compared to students in other (urban) areas. This could potentially restrict their educational opportunities in future (tertiary education for example).

What does the world of wiki have to say about the digital divide?

Wikipedia (i.e. everyone in the world that has bothered to publish on it) defines "the digital divide" as

"the gap between people with effective access to digital and information technology, and those with very limited or no access at all. It includes the imbalance both in physical access to technology and the resources and skills needed to effectively participate as a digital citizen."

this is interesting for 2 reasons.

1. The first part is basically what I just said.
2. The second part wasn't.

SO, it not only includes the gap between those who physically, tangibly, have the technology and those who don't, but also encompasses inequalities in digital literacy levels.

i like that. i can work with that.

The wikipedia article also mentions that the term can refer to inequalities in broadband network (internet) access. Here it is not a case of tangible product, or of digital literacy, but of access to an intangible service. I guess there could be a number of reasons for this. The 2 most obvious that pop into my mind are income and geographical factors. Obviously, those with lower incomes cannot afford the service and those in geographical locations that do not have the service available simply cannot access it.

Actually, this could provide an interesting (more focused) topic for research: How does lack of access to broadband network facilities effect learning in remote communities? How can the digital divide be overcome in this case?

My last topic (efficacy of Wii use in PE) focused on how technology should/should not be used to enhance learning. I like the idea of this time focusing more on how we can get technology and technological skills to those who may not have them readily available. Kids need to have it before they can use it right. This time I'm gonna focus more on how we can get it to them maybe. hmmmmm...

"The Digital Divide"...

"The Digital Divide"

This phrase is the starting point for my second series of journal entries. I saw this phrase listed in the suggested topic areas in the details for our assessments on the LWT blog. The phrase was something I immediately recognised and had a reaction to. It's basically the gap between those who have technology and those who don't right?

I'm gonna look things up, check things out, and start researching what exactly "the digital divide" is and how it relates to education.

Hey, if the Wii turns out to be rubbish for PE purposes, how about some of this stuff!

ACE gives thumbs down to Wii!

This article/press release from the American Council On Exercise (ACE) provides some solid evidence regarding the physical fitness benefits of using the Wii and other similar systems (i.e. Dancetown). The study by the ACE focused on the most challenging activities of the Wii Fit program. This decision initially suggests that Wii Sport activities (such as golf and bowling) were not included due to their relative lack of physical challenges. This would help validate my previous suspicions that using these games in schools would have little effect on student fitness and activity levels. However, ACE's chief science officer in the article, states that:


"While we found that playing the Wii Fit burns twice as many calories as a sedentary video game, the outcome of the study suggests that Wii Sports, the Wii's suite of exergames that includes tennis, boxing, golf and bowling, is a better option and more capable of helping consumers meet minimum intensity guidelines for exercise".

It seems that, surprisingly, the Wii Sports games actually do a better job than the Wii Fit games when it comes to providing users with vigorous exercise.

However, this doesn't mean that the Wii sports suite is still able to provide sufficient levels of physical activity, merely more than the underwhelming Wii Fit suite.

The research found that in all cases, performing the actual activity yielded much greater calorie expenditure than the performing the virtual equivalent.

Using the Wii for PE leads to better ICT literacy?!

This question just popped into my head...

I have been reading about/thinking about/writing about the effect that using the Wii in PE might have on acheiving PE outcomes. What about the effect that it might have on students' ICT literacy?

Could a relevant body justify using the Wii by stating that it has the ability to increase technological literacy?

I have no resource or anything to present with this. Just a thought.

Wii instead of PE? Do I agree? Read on and see!

Daily Telegraph Article - Future Of Sport In Schools

This is an interesting article. Firstly, its Australian. Secondly, its more recent that the last one I wrote about. Thirdly, its similar to the last one I found but The Daily Telegraph provide their trademark bias (lovely) and live up to their tabloid newspaper status by throwing in a celebrity interview mid-article!


Despite having to sift through the opinions of a world champion boxer (who must therefore also be an expert on achieving Physical Education outcomes right?!) the article to does raise a few points that are worth considering when discussing this issue.


Is it reasonable to offer Wii Sports/Wii Fit as an elective, effectively offering it as a substitute for other outdoor activities/sports? Maybe. Is there additional compulsory PE that includes outdoor activity? PE is not only about physical activity. It also about spending time outdoors (important for a number of reasons including the obvious one of getting some vitamin d!). It is about socialisation of children. Does the Wii provide the same social benefits as team games and activities in regular PE class? I'm not sure that it does!


See the following image (from the article):

This image raises another question: How does using the Wii effect student participation? As a PE teacher in training I have been repeatedly taught that maximum participation is a key element of any good PE lesson. Simply, you should have as many students active at any given time as possible. This is not only to increase the amount of time the students are physically active, to maintain high levels of student engagement and give students more opportunities/time to develop and improve their skills. The picture above shows 4 active students and the rest of the class sitting and waiting. What does this do for engagement levels? Activity levels? Skill development? I can see 16 kids who look like experts at sitting on their bums! Unless schools have the means to provide multiple consoles in each class their will inevitably be less overall activity than a 'regular' outdoor/gymnasium PE lesson.

The article does mention that the Wii provided a great alternative in a school that did not have a tennis court. I can see the benefits that this may have.

It also includes the idea that the Wii can provide a means for promoting sports. Though it is not explicitly stated in the article, it is worth extending that thought and thinking about potential future research addressing a research question such as "Can use of the Wii lead to greater interest and participation in 'real' sports?"

Hmmm... ponderness...

U.K Government endorses Wii...

Article - UK Government Endorses Wii For PE


"With childhood obesity rates in the U.K. continuing to rise, the government recently endorsed a program that would see the Nintendo Wii employed in physical education programs across the country."


What are the implications of a government endorsed program that condones and encourages the use of video game consoles in class? Can the Wii provide an adequate substitute for regular PE classes/physical activity? These are interesting questions that provide a starting point for my investigations into using the Wii for physical education purposes.

The magazine article above states that the U.K. government's decision to employ the Wii across the country in physical education (PE) programs was the result of evidence gathered in a small study of 5 English schools. The research suggested that usually inactive students had an increase in their physical activity levels as a result of introducing the Wii in the school environment. A U.K. government spokesperson stated that using video game consoles can play a role in getting children to exercise. The word "can" seems like the operative one here.

To me it seems that yes, the Wii has the potential to help inactive students increase their activity levels. However, it should by no means be a replacement for regular PE.

For starters, the article states that students were lining up to play Wii sports such as tennis, baseball, bowling and golf. All of these video game adaptations require significantly less physical activity than their respective 'real' counterparts. For example, Wii golf does not require the vigorous walking that is an integral part of golf. Even in more micro terms, Wii bowling does not require the participant to repeatedly lift a heavy bowling ball (as is required in actual bowling!).

The way the study/article talks about inactive students lining up at lunch time to play these games does not necessarily fill my mind with images that reflect healthy lifestyles!

What do I see?

My mind immediately sees: overweight children, standing still inside a classroom, in front of a screen, one hand holding the controller, the other hand stuffing a donut in their face, meanwhile kids outside are running around, playing handball, shooting hoops, or kicking a ball around.

I know what you're thinking: "Wow! Dood is harsh!".

Wii bowling (and other similar Wii sports games) in my opinion would have negligible effects on student fitness. However, this doesn't rule out other Wii games. I'm going to keep hunting and see what else I can find. I think if used well, the Wii could provide a great supplement to normal PE classes.

Anyway, this article provided a nice starting point, gave me some interesting ideas, and immediately got me fired up about the topic!

Investigations will continue...

Sport and Technology in an American college

This little video demonstrates how different technology (including the Nintendo Wii) can be used in Physical Education. Its a cute little vid made by some American students. What is interesting about it is the fact that it shows how younger people (these ones at least! are they final year of high school? or maybe first year education students?) are interested and motivated to advocate the use of technology in PE classes.

Radness and a HD

here is a random technology image:


and here is a random sports image:

stuff stuff stuff, life changing comments and analysis on ICT issue (relating to PE), lots of marks...