Pillay Lynne: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
Pillay Lynne: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
[Volume:621;Page:16231] 
11.  
LYNNE PILLAY (Labour—Waitakere) 
 to the  
Minister of Education 
: What steps is he taking to improve the use of information communications technology in schools? 
Hon TREVOR MALLARD (Minister of Education) 
: 
 From the middle of next year every school in New Zealand will have access to high-speed broadband Internet through Project Probe. With the final Probe contract signed the Government has invested $48.3 million in the project. This investment will boost education and economic development across New Zealand and is an important part of our strategy to grow a more innovative economy. 
Lynne Pillay 
: How will he ensure that teachers are given the opportunity to improve their information and communications technology skills? 
Hon TREVOR MALLARD 
: Through a variety of methods. Next year we will fund 10 E-Learning fellows. The teachers will be released from their teaching duties for a year to undertake research and to explore new and innovative ways of meeting students’ needs. We are also investing almost $10 million per year in information and communications technology professional development cluster programmes and around 21500 laptops have been distributed to teachers and principals through the laptop for teachers scheme. I should say that all those initiatives are in the group that the National Party has said it would scrap. 
Nandor Tanczos 
: Has the Minister asked his colleague the Minister for Information Technology to brief him on the potential benefits of non-proprietary software in terms of saving for his ministry and accessibility for schoolchildren if New Zealand were to follow the lead of a number of other countries and move schools over to Linux operating systems; if not will he do so in the future? 
Hon TREVOR MALLARD 
: I think I have briefed that member on that issue on a number of occasions. I am well aware of it. 
Paul Adams 
: Is reducing the cost of information and communications technology not the biggest step to improve the use of information and communications technology in schools; if so what is his response to the letter he received on Friday from Mr John Needham board chair and Mr John Inger principal of Morrinsville College stating that: “The reality is that we simply cannot afford to replace or lease existing computers let alone add more to our networks without moving further into debt.” 
Hon TREVOR MALLARD 
: I think that it is fair to say that I have not got to that letter yet but probably my response will be that they are substantially better off under this Government by about 10 percent real operations grant funding per student. 
Nandor Tanczos 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. I know that I should have raised it immediately that the Minister answered but I was just digesting his answer. I ask for clarification of his answer because I was not clear whether he was saying that he had briefed me which I do not think he has done or whether he has briefed the Minister for Information Technology. 
Hon TREVOR MALLARD 
: No the member that the member referred to. 
Lynne Pillay 
: Do any of the programs supplied to schools have spellcheckers and how are they to be used? 
Hon TREVOR MALLARD 
: Yes they do. I know that at least one of the programs does. They are relatively easy to use. I would recommend them to members of the House especially the Opposition education spokesperson who sent out a press statement last week with not one but two spelling mistakes in it—that is the party of high education standards. 
Paul Adams 
: Does the Minister agree that an important step to improve the use of information and communications technology in schools is to improve the safety of information and communications technology; if so when will he support the installation of firewalls on school computers especially in light of a recent school computer audit that revealed that one-quarter of all such computers contained inappropriate material? 
Hon TREVOR MALLARD 
: I do not want to accept by implication the allegations of fact in the member’s question but the question of Internet safety is something that this Government is dealing with as a matter of priority as far as schools are concerned. We have put extensive funding into the Internet safety group which is regarded as a world leader in this area and I think that some of the people who are chipping should not throw stones too far.