IN a sea of iPads, tablets, laptops and interactive whiteboards, the idea of getting your hands dirty on a chalky blackboard or fiercely rubbing out a mistake with an eraser seems rather quaint in today’s classrooms in the ACT. 

In reality, new technology has had a place in schools around the Territory for close to a decade.

The INSPIRE Centre, which launched last year as a partnership between the ACT Government and the University of Canberra, is behind finding new and emerging technologies to be applied in local classrooms.

The centre’s manager, Laurie Campbell, believes tools such as iPads, tablets and electronic whiteboards have “empowered students”.

“Technology has given students flexibility of choice about how and when they learn, and that’s starting from kindergarten onwards,” he says.

“This environment is so critical to their ability to learn and think in different ways, and to use the technology to be innovative and entrepreneurial in their future – there isn’t really a job that doesn’t involve technology.

“Students can research information or analyse data on their iPads, play a math game on the whiteboard, or connect with other students hundreds of kilometres away by using social media… it becomes a personal thing, a tactile engagement.”

When information is put into a graphic format “kids get it straight away”, Laurie says.

“It’s simpler – there’s a lot more collaboration, a lot more sharing when learning is visible,” he says.

Laurie’s INSPIRE associate Ian Thomson, who is also the Information Communication Technology convener at Kingsford Smith School in Holt, says technology has given new confidence to students who previously struggled in class.

“Some of these guys who perhaps haven’t had a lot of success with school previously, gain confidence from using these technologies because they are familiar with them, which is fantastic. It’s really given them a boost,” he says.

“The kids use this kind of technology at home, so I think when they come to school and use it, it’s safe, it’s known to them. Their adaptive ability is amazing – some of them even know more than me.”

But technology doesn’t come without risks, and Ian says educating students about cyber safety is a top priority.

Kingsford Smith School Year 7 teacher, Emma Turner, says technology has gone from being a novelty factor to a reliable learning tool for students.

“It helps me as a teacher, too; rather than being the sole provider of information, I can step back and be the facilitator,” she says.

“The students get excited because they can find so many interesting facts when they research themselves, rather than me telling them; so it’s more about honing your own research skills rather than relying on the board or handouts.”

Year 7 student Lema Khoram agrees: “I find it easier to use an iPad than writing.”

She says she’d like to be a journalist and report from all around the world when she grows up, saying: “I think using this kind of technology… will help me do that.”

But Ian insists this isn’t the death of the pen and paper.

“It’s about a collaborative approach; different ways of learning complementing each other so students can get the best learning experience,” he says.