So the SMH have put out a piece heralding e-learning as the latest solution to the literacy levels in indigenous students in the NT. This was following a damning report form the NAPLAN (the National Assessment Program in Literacy And Numeracy that replaces the basic skills test) results that these children are the worst off in the country in terms of their reading age and ability to compete with other children across the nation.
The article outlines the great initiative and the amount of sponsorship it has from both government and other organizations.
The only thing missing is pretty crucial though. Are these kids ready to learn in an e-learning context? I guess this jumped out at me because I did one of my assignments on learner readiness, but it seems like a pretty obvious thing that should be assessed before rolling out yet another initiative in the NT. If the issue being addressed is a serious lack of education access, how can policy makers and tertiary institutions assume that access to the internet and new technology is any better?
It seems like a nice idea, but I’m not sure it’s been implemented with all factors taken into consideration…
You can read the article here.
Chris has also written about it on his blog, you can read what he has to say here.
