And the school bus is probably inaccessible for wheelchairs. When she develops an infection she must travel to the nearest regional centre or the State capital. The full inclusion and adequate support of rural and remote students with disabilities is going to require a substantial infusion of funds and training, starting with a major attitudinal shift. Of course, accessibility of education also encompasses many other issues. For example, access to appropriate technology infrastructure and maintenance support remains problematic for many rural and remote school students in Australia.
Internet access is unreliable and can be very costly by comparison to metropolitan centres.
Many remote communities across Australia lack grid power or have intermittent power. Access to professional development programs in information technology is a major concern for rural and remote teachers. In the face of all these barriers, it is no wonder that the overwhelming perception of students, teachers and parents in rural and remote communities was that they were being left behind by the information age. Affordability of education I was frankly astonished to find that most education department staffing and funding formulas make almost no compensation for the extra costs and time involved in providing education in rural areas, in participating in professional development for staff and in sports competitions and other extra-curricula learning opportunities for students, in getting repairs done both to buildings and computer equipment. The major compensatory program is the Commonwealth s Country Areas Program administered through State departments and not always equitably we were told.