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Guest posting to voced-coord email list.
Item 3 of 15:

Date: Fri, 24 Jul 1998 11:55:52 +1000
To: voced-coord@owl.qut.edu.au
From: Gary Stephenson (Stevo)
Subject: Re: VocEd:Gary Stephenson(Introduction-ONLINE)

Ty Emerson (ty_emerson@dpa.act.gov.au) wrote:

"I would be interested to know the difference in website access between employers, teachers and students in your program. Have you measured this? I am aware that all schools have at least some access to the internet, so a web resource is ideal for students and teachers."

[Gary:] The site has been operational for 5 weeks with around 400 hits, this would be made up of 90% teachers as i have been inservicing them how to use it.

I will never know how often students use it, as I have installed the site on stand alone machines in schools and specific classrooms (updating becomes a problem). I use a zip drive to download site to the schools individually. It allows for lightning speed & also the teachers are getting the idea of its benefit and slowly recommending resources, notes, teaching aids and video's etc.

The site is designed for students and parents to access information that would have been provided by the school at subject selection time. To reinforce the benefits of Voc Ed, also to show them that it is a well supported by in a professional & technological way (as the net and resources will only grow in value).

[Ty Emerson]:
"The ACT has the highest rate of business use of the internet in Australia (apparently 40% of all employers - ABS data) ... so I have initially designed a site to speed up vocational placement requests for employers. The site is currently under construction but is somewhat operational at http://www.jitc.org.au

[Gary:]
I can not see employers using this resource (ed. - the St George Compact site)at the moment and it was not designed as such. The way employers will gain benefit is by the way teachers will send students out and the simplified & individualised forms (skills logs). We are still working on these but I can allow temporary access if you contact me for the logon name and password.

[Gary:]
Office is the best to look at, we are still inputing the others as a trained teacher is sent to each employer to individualise the logs.

Employers have said that they do not want booklets and lengthy reading material. So we only send what the employer can actually enhance/structure. Don't forget the trained teacher still checks the logs off in the log book.

[Ty Emmerson:]
"My question? How do we maximise our service to employers when their participation on the internet is less than that of students and (generally) teachers? Our employer marketing material will be launched shortly with the website address printed all over it - but is this enough? How do we affect a cultural change with employers to WANT to use the internet for VET-in-schools purposes ?"

[Gary:]
Employers have said that they do not want booklets and lengthy reading material. So we only send what the employer can actually enhance/ structure. Don't forget the trained teacher still checks the logs off in the log book. It will take time to change employers idea of the NET.

I hope this answers some points Ty. The main point is that the web site is only a small part of our package, but it will soon become the biggest I can see. In just 12 months our schools have doubled & in some cases tripled their internet access, what is going to happen in the next 12 months. To start developing a web site later will be far harder than starting now and enhancing later.

Stevo