Ruapehu College gets 'wired' thanks to Rotary

Ruapehu Bulletin, Volume 13, Issue 595, 18 July 1995, Page 1

Ruapehu College gets 'wired' thanks to Rotary

$ 10,000 donated by Rotary means Ruapehu Col lege is getting 'wired'. In computer jargon, that means they will have state-of-the-art computer technology including computer networking. The college is joining a syndicate of four other rural schools who will soon be using each other' s specialist teachers via a Telecom Telelink and an audiographic conference system. The other schools are Rangitikei, Taihape and Waverly colleges. The system means lessons prepared at one school can be shared over the wire by all four. Most rural schools, having small rolls and small staff numbers, can't have a lot of specialist subject teachers. This way the four schools can share such teachers. For example, a Japanese language teacher at one school will prepare a lesson, then share it via the link and special equipment, with classes at the three other schools simultaneously, At this stage the link will include text (generated on a keyboard)

graphics and speech. The lesson will use graphics in a similar way to a slide show, being brought up on a conference monitor in each of the remote classrooms. The teacher will be able to interact with his or her students, and the other teachers involved, by voice instantaneously. The remote students will be able to send material hand-written on a special electronic tablet back down the wire. Later, video will be added so that the remote classrooms can see each other. Ruapehu College principal Ralph Lane accepted a cheque for $2500 from Rotary president Jim Bennett last Friday — part payment for the $10,000 set-up. Much of the total for the four schools ($10,000 for each school) came from the Dudding Trust — a grant that was organised by the Marton Rotary Club. "We would have found it virtually impossible to set up this system without Rotary," Turn to Page 5

Ruapehu College 'wired'

FROMPAGE1 Mr Lane said the system is being set up with help from the Wairakei Polytechnic who will also provide the essential training for teachers. On top of the set-up and training costs, link-ups will cost each school $40 per hour. An added advantage of the system is that the school will be able to connect to the Internet, the world- wide computer network. He said to make the system worthwhile a high degree of

co-operation between the schools will be required. Downgrade danger Asked if with such a system there was a danger that a rural school would try to save money by employing less qualified teachers and opting to provide more lessons over the wire, Mr Lane said he did not see that as a concern. He said a school would have to have skills to offer the other schools for them to want to share staff time. "You still want the best staff you can get — we've got a growing school here."