Australian Government to Provide Funding for ICT Professional Development

Media Release, The Hon. Julia Gillard, MP, 18 February 2010

The Minister for Education, Employment and Workplace Relations, Ms Julia Gillard, has announced that the Australian Government will allocate $40 million to provide professional development for teachers in information and communication technology (ICT).

The Digital Strategy for Teachers and School Leaders aims to assist teachers and school leaders to achieve proficiency in the use of ICT and to embed these skills in their classroom practices.

Initially, the strategy will develop a national ICT self-assessment tool for teachers. Ms Gillard indicated that the tool would be trialled from September 2010 and that she expected that it would become available to all teachers from March 2011. She also announced that the results of the self-assessment would be used to develop an in-school professional development program for teachers and school leaders.

The Australian Government will also allocate $20 million of the funding towards an ICT Innovation Fund (ICTIF). Schools and other institutions will be able to apply for funding under the ICTIF from April 2010 to develop projects that improve the capability of pre-service and in-service teachers, and which drive ICT innovation and leadership.

For further information about the Digital Strategy, visit the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations website.

 

 

Back to News Page