Dr Dennis Jensen MP

Ipad brings opportunity

I had the great pleasure this week to visit Canning Vale Primary School to open their three new BER classroom blocks. I was joined by my State Liberal colleagues Minister for Mental Health; Disabilities Services Helen Morton and Member for Southern River Peter Abetz. My thoughts are well known on over priced school halls, pink batts and set top boxes. While there were some hurdles for Canning Vale and its dedicated teachers and parents to overcome, the school was luckier than many and largely got what they wanted.

But as great as it was to see students eager to learn in their new classrooms, it was the new Education Support Centre's Independent Living Centre with Dianne Harper, the ESC Principal that had a great affect on me.

The centre is embracing Gen Y technologies such as interactive white boards and Ipads to transform the lives of children with profound disabilities. With specially designed Apps, children with otherwise very limited communication abilities are communicating with their teachers, family and friends.

There was much ballyhoo a number of months ago when Malcolm Turnbull began to use his Ipad during question time. Tony Burke was also much maligned when he dared to read from this tablet at the dispatch box during question time. But to see how the Ipad is opening doors for these children was quite simply amazing.

Canning Vale has been careful in the design of its classroom location to ensure children with disabilities interact with other children at the school in common play are at recess and lunch.
But as we know children can be fickle characters when someone might not be quite like them.
The specialist support teachers spoke of the way this hip new technology is facilitating social inclusion with children from other classes at the school. The sight of an Ipad and its proficient operators is enough for other children to disregard any barriers once built by disability.

One app allows the children to press an icon for their name, home, family, school, food and drink, to hear a pre recorded sentence which clearly conveys their need or want at the time. Another most fascinating application uses a friendly purple cat to improve speech patterns and ensure students are articulating their sentences as clearly as possible. The students are asked questions by the cat; what is your name? where do you live?, basic questions to you and I but ones that can be hard for some students to answer clearly

The children reply to the cat by speaking into the Ipad, their sentence is recorded and played back to them. The character on the screen then reacts depending on how coherent the sentence is. A thumbs up, or a shake of the head lets the child know how well they have done. If the child has not been clear enough the process continues until they get it right. Repetition combined with an engaging cartoon character is engaging these kids in learning and working wonders with their communication development.

The skills and tools used by these young students can also be utilised by those in their teens and older facilitating freedom and independence. If they become stuck doing their shopping, catching a bus or are lost at any time, become confused or flustered the quick press of a button on their Iphone or Ipod using these apps explains clearly to passers by their need for assistance.

We take for granted our ability to clearly communicate with others the simplest things each and every day. I take my hat off to these children and their teachers for embracing technology that is giving freedom and independence.

I congratulate Canning Vale Primary School Principals Phillippa Berkhouat and Dianne Harper for their dedication to their students and look forward to assisting the school in any way I can in the future.