Ministers launch education portal

Education Minister Hekia Parata and Associate Education Minister Nikki Kaye today launched a new digital portal for teachers, students and education administrators with Crown-owned company Network for Learning (N4L).

Ms Parata says the Government has invested $211 million in the N4L managed network as a fully funded package for schools and has also tasked the company with developing the portal.

“Through the N4L managed network, the Government is picking up the cost to provide schools with safe, predictable and fast internet with uncapped data, content filtering and network security services.

“It will also provide greater accessibility to a growing collection of teaching and learning resources through this portal.

“The portal will provide schools with access to trusted, high-quality learning resources and will make safe, online collaboration easy.
“Technology, and digital learning, are part of our modernising of the education system to raise achievement for all our children and young people.
“The pace at which schools are connecting to the Government-funded managed network service is encouraging, and we’re expecting 700 schools to connect by the end of this year. All schools will be invited to connect by 2016,” Ms Parata says.

“It is great to be launching this portal today and that we now have a collaborative online environment where students and teachers will soon be able to connect, and share information,” Ms Kaye says.

“A number of teachers and principals are now testing this new digital space. During this first phase, they have been able to access and review material. At the heart of the portal’s functionality is the ability for teachers and students to create, share and rate the quality and usefulness of content.

“A handful of teachers and principals have been putting the portal’s search and sharing functionalities to the test. Their vital feedback has helped N4L to continue to develop a robust and useful tool for the whole education sector.

“It can be a challenge for teachers and students to find information that they can trust. N4L is working hard to ensure that information from key government agencies will be accessible through the portal, including the Ministry of Education’s Te Kete Ipurangi, which provides schools and students with a wide range of trusted information and resources.

“N4L have told me that around 500 teachers will be invited to explore the portal early next month and that all educators will have access by the end of this year,” Ms Kaye says.

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