Small Towns Conference

Check it out Project coordinator Christina Turner at the Small towns conference  September 2010

http://www.stuff.co.nz/taranaki-daily-news/news/4148330/Thinking-small-is-all-right

Christina Turner Speaking about Computers In Homes at the 2010 Small Towns Conference In Hawera

MC Te Radar 

Speech Delivered by Louise Cole, DIA Regional Manager, on behalf of the Minister

http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA1012/S00176/computers-in-home-taranaki-graduation.htm


Computers in Home Taranaki Graduation Friday, 10 December 2010, 10:15 am
Speech: The Maori Party

Thursday 9 December 2010; 3.30pm

Computers in Home Taranaki Graduation

Delivered by Louise Cole, DIA Regional Manager, on behalf of the Minister

Speech

I acknowledge the significance of this location in the rohe of Ngati Ruanui; and recognise also the peoples of Tangahoe and Pakakohi.

Your honour the Mayor, Ross Dunlop, Trustees of Taranaki E-learning; Graduates, tutors and whanau.

There is a by-line on the South Taranaki District Council website which brands South Taranaki as being ‘alive with opportunity’.

This week is an absolute demonstration of the veracity of this claim.

Just over 48 hours ago, the Minister for Communications and Information Technology, Steven Joyce announced that Hawera, alongside of New Plymouth and Whanganui, will be among the first places to benefit from the government’s rollout of ultra-fast broadband.

It was great to see your Mayor, Ross Dunlop, immediately spring into action expressing his enthusiasm for the potential of this ultra fast fibre network.

And it is indeed something to be celebrated - that broadband will be delivered at speeds of at least fifty times faster than what is currently available, bringing with it of course a direct boost to productivity across this region.

But of course it is not just Hawera that has brought fame and fortune to South Taranaki.

I was really fascinated to learn about all the ‘firsts’ that have happened right here in Eltham.

It was in Eltham in 1887 that the first dairy factory was built.

It was in Eltham in 1906 that Bridge Street became the first tarsealed road.

And it was in Eltham that the first concrete power poles were used.

So you are well used to putting Eltham on the map.

Today you expand that list further, through this special Computers in Homes in Taranaki Graduation.

I am only sorry that I am unable to be with you, to share in the excitement of this moment.

And it seems so appropriate that there will be students from Te kura kaupapa Maori o Ngati Ruanui, and Patea Area School, along with other members of the wider South Taranaki community to share in the buzz of this graduation.

Because fundamentally, what is so exciting about the Computers in Homes project is that it builds an expectation within families that being digitally literate and connected is a critical means of opening up access to the information highway.

The Taranaki project has been working with your schools to identify families who do not have a computer in their home. These families are provided with a computer and twenty hours of training, a free Internet connection for six months, and technical support.

But of course resources on their own will never make the difference.

This is all about whanau taking the control into their own hands.

In many ways, what has been happening with Computers in Homes is Whanau Ora in action. It is about building whānau capability, strengthening whānau connections and supporting whānau leadership to achieve the best outcomes for them.

And that’s why I really love the Computers in Homes concept.

Because it’s all about connecting parents with their children’s learning and providing families with the skills and confidence to use technology. The key to the success of the programme is the involvement of the whole whānau.

Of course Computers in Homes is not new to the Taranaki region. CIH was piloted in Taranaki in 2005, and in 2007 Eltham Community Care successfully extended the pilot project to a further 100 families with funding from the Community Partnership Fund. In fact I recall coming here to a graduation just a couple of years ago.

In November 2008, the Taranaki E-Learning Trust was formed to take over the Computers in Homes project from Eltham Community Care.

The Trust was granted $316,000 through the Community Partnership Fund to implement Computer in Homes to 150 families in South Taranaki; and in doing so, we know Eltham is well on the way to being a local leader at the forefront of the digital age.

And I want to mihi to Karen Cave, the Chair of the Trust, and the wonderful diverse range of trustees that are gathered together in this project. You have everything from students to senior citizens, graduates to grandparents, Councillors and the Clergy and even one of the local MPs, tena koe Chester.

There are many outcomes associated with Computers in Homes. Endless research reports confirm that digital literacy and smart, connected communities are critical to future and that reducing the ‘digital divide’ is key.

It was the challenge of digitally disconnected communities that I drew on in the case we put forward during Budget 2010 for some $8.345 million over three years for digital literacy and connection. And it is graduations like today, that remind me, just how important this investment will be in our ongoing advances as a nation.

In the Taranaki region the 2006 Census reported that some 37% of households (approximately 1000 families) do not have access to the Internet.

This flies in the face of the commitment to digital literacy - what the New Zealand Computer Society has described as being the right of every New Zealander.

A report they produced this year also suggested that addressing ICT competence in New Zealand would bring an annual productivity gain of $1.7 billion so there are clearly some tangible fiscal benefits that flow from this project.

But I think one of the most wonderful outcomes is quite simply in every family home.

This programme is community driven, and encourages families to learn together, irrespective of age.

Parents who participate in the programme receive twenty hours of basic computer training at their children's schools. This includes word processing, emailing and using the Internet for homework as well as for general family information.

Tamariki can support their parents with the skills needed to use computers and the internet. Parents in turn support their children’s learning, leveraging on the expanding array of digital technologies.

So I want to focus on the sixty or so families who are graduating today, and to say how proud we all are of your achievements.

You have taken up the challenge to get connected, to surf the net, download documents, google search, and cut and paste. You are now confident in browsing the information highway, in emailing with attachments, and you know the importance of saving as you go.

All of these skills demonstrate your open attitude to learning, your willingness to upskill and your enthusiasm in taking a whole of family approach to achieving outcomes you all want.

I congratulate you all, I salute the tutors and the coordinators who have invested in your future, and I wish you all the greatest success in the journey ahead.

ENDS

Wellington - Happy 10th Birthday Computers In Homes

Christina Turner Project Coordinator for Taranaki, and Karen Cave Chairperson for the Taranaki E-Learning Trust are currently in Wellington for the Computers In Homes 10th birthday. This coincides with the quarterly meeting for the National Coordinating Group. Below are some photos...

Mt Taranaki from the plane

The birthday dinner

Di Das speaks to the group

Wellington looking all beautiful :)

National Coordinating Group Meeting

Graduation time!!

On Thursday the 9th of December at the Eltham Town Hall another group of families will be graduating from the Computer in Homes course. These are people from Opunake High School, Te Kura Kaupapa Maori o te Ngati Ruanui, Hawera CtC, and Patea Area School. There will be 60 graduates this time around.
The caterer for this event will be Wendy, who is one of the graduates from the first Eltham Computers In Homes class.

The newly painted Eltham Town Hall on Stanners Street, Eltham, where the Graduation will take place 

Christina our coordinator will be attending the Te Kura Kaupapa Maori o te Ngati Ruanui prize-giving assembly in Hawera, on the 14th of December to present certificates to their graduates, as many are unable to make the graduation in Eltham.

Our awesome website :)

Just added to our website is a new page.  The new page lists the trustees, with photos of each one. Here is the link....http://www.tel2020.org/taranaki-e-learning/the-trustees

The current classes have been making use of the web site extensively as many of the downloads the students use in class are on the website for them to down load. Here is the link for that page...
http://www.tel2020.org/computers-in-homes/handouts

We have another page titled "Hoaxes, urban myths and spam" where we have added some of the interesting and creative ways that people have tried to catch others out http://www.tel2020.org/hoaxes-urban-myths-and-spam

Announcement news and more is a page where Ive tried to put some online newspaper articles http://www.tel2020.org/taranaki-e-learning/announcements

We really like our website!! You can visit it at tel2020.org

We also have a Facebook page http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100000882262625&ref=ts which I TRY and put updates on.

eDay is coming!!

eDay is back again this year on Saturday 6^th November at the TSB Hub.

This is a public ‘drive thru’ event where any resident can put any ewaste (computers, computer equipment, cameras or cellphones) into their boot and come to the TSB Hub, Camberwell Rd carpark between 9am and 3pm on the 6^th of Nov and drop it off for free. The equipment gets loaded into a container onsite and gets shipped off to be recycled. 

Click here for more information

Funding from the budget

Computers in Homes received some funding in the latest budget. At our May meeting, the National CIH Coordinating Group were guests at a function for Bill English, deputy Prime Minister, who told us that we had Tariana Turia to thank for the money we did get. He said that she sat in his office and glowered at him till he put us in the budget. It looks like we will have funding for 1000 families a year for the next three years, over the whole of NZ. We need to think about our role in this. Laurence sent an email after he had meetings with DIA. Some of the salient points are as follows:

Scope is for 3000 families over 3 years, commencing with 2010/11 year
2020 is to be funded directly
2020 will enter into agreements with local partners – similar to existing arrangements
Essential that local CIH committees (or Trusts) stay in place not essential to establish new trusts, but personally, I still think this is a good idea – to seek other local leverage opportunities – and explore the local deployment.

It looks like the Taranaki E-Learning Trust may have parts of King Country and National Park area.


Given that there are thousands of families in the South Island, South Auckland, Wellington, Manawatu, Horowhenua, and Waikato who have not been served (apart from funding 2020 has received for Di to manage in those areas) I think that we should not expect to be assigned a large number of families.

CIH Coordinator for Taranaki Christina Turner speaks with Bill English Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance

New Computer in Homes classes

On Tuesday the 27th of July tutor Karen Cave had a class full of new students. To fit these classes in before the term ends Karen and Coordinator Christina Turner have had to rearrange the lesson plans from a series of 10 into a series of 8. To date 4 of the 8 classes have been completed, and most of the time things are running smoothly.

Photographs are taken of the students and then emailed to them so they can have practice downloading and saving their images and then creating an email and attaching the photograph.
Pictured below are some of Karen's students.

Classes have also started at the Hawera CTC with tutor Lisa Tangaroa.

Graduation Monday 28th June

COMPUTER in Homes Taranaki had its biggest ever graduation ceremony on Monday the 28th June, with 62 students from all over South Taranaki graduating.
The event, held in the Eltham Town Hall, was well attended by  graduates, their family and friends, several  Community Board members, Mayor Ross Dunlop,  local MP Chester Burrows and national co-ordinator Di Das. Performances were made by the local Te Kura Kaupapa Maori O Ngati Ruanui school.

“We had no idea just how well this programme was going to be received” Said Di Das, National coordinator of Computer in Homes.  “South Taranaki is one of the most successful programmes, as we see students not only help their children in the home, but go on to seek more education and even better job opportunities for themselves”
MP Chester Burrows admitted that he remembers when he was first learning, how frustrated and he felt when first using new technology so he has a lot of admiration for the graduates and what they have achieved.
Eltham’s had its first intake of 15 families graduating in March, 2005.  “We have seen this grow from just a small group of dedicated people  to what it is today and we will see it grow even  more” said Di Das.

Tutor Lisa Tangaroa and Mayor Ross Dunlop call students up to receive certificates

 

 

 Below: students and tutors line up for photos :)

South Taranaki Computers in Homes project

Manaia gets Digital!

Some of the students have a laugh with Alison, their tutor (the one in red)

Hard at work.

New CTC opens in Hawera

Taranaki E-Learning Trust's new CTC opened in time for fifteen families to begin their training in April.

The computers are all lined up ready to be installed.

Hawera families get a start in the digital world

Fifteen families will benefit from South Taranaki's Computers in Homes program. Training started for these students and next week, they'll take home a computer and their families will enjoy surfing the internet.

New Classes Start.

February 2010 saw four new classes start in South Taranaki.

Karen Cave teaches two classes in the Eltham CTC, and retired teacher Alison Howie teaches two classes at the Manaia Primary School in Manaia.

New Banners!

Taranaki E-Learning Trust Chairperson, Karen Cave shows off out new Computers in Homes and Stepping UP banners, on display in the Eltham Community Training Centre.