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Wirreanda Secondary School
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Wirreanda Secondary School is located in Onkaparinga LGA, SA. The school is
often is recognised for its quality, inclusive and equal access education
opportunities for all members of the Onkaparinga community1.
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Located on the southern fringe of Adelaide, Onkaparinga is home to more than
170,000 residents2. Wirreanda Secondary School serves a low socio-economic
community, with the majority of students recorded within the lowest quartile of
socio-educational advantage1.
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Onkaparinga residents have high quality access to ICTs, with the LGA recording
an ADII score of 73, in comparison with the SA average of 68.53. Much of the
difference between Onkaparinga and the SA average is in digital ability which is
usually amplified in regional areas.
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Higher access to ICTs is reflected in the results, with the majority of laptop
recipients surveyed indicating that they have access to reliable internet at home or
their place of study.
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However, access to a computer remains a key barrier for students, with 40%
indicating that they did not have access to a computer after school hours.
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Survey 1
Respondents
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Laptops
Distributed
Survey 2
Respondents
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Of the 60% of students who did have access to a device after school hours, 30%
had to share it with someone else in their household. As a result, 65%
acknowledged that they frequently, often or occasionally had difficulty completing
school work because they did not have access to a computer.
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After a 9 month period since receiving the laptops, 100% of students indicated
that the laptop has supported them in their school work, with 83% of students
indicating they saw an improvement in their grades that they believe can be
attributed to their new laptop.
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Only 16% of students are still sharing their device with someone else in their
household, indicating that laptop donations have supported challenges relating to
access.
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In addition, students on average rated themselves a 2.8 out of 5 for their
confidence level in the ability to troubleshoot and resolve technical issues with
their laptop. Similarly, students rated themselves 3.8 out of 5 in their overall
confidence in using a computer. This indicates that there is further work needed to
be done to support students in their digital ability.
OVERVIEW
1.
Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority, 2022, Wirreanda Secondary School, Home | My School
2.
Profile.id, 2021, City of Onkaparinga, Home | City of Onkaparinga | Community profile (id.com.au)
3.
ADII, 2021, The national picture, The national picture (digitalinclusionindex.org.au)