Pyes Pa School pupils will be well-prepared for a future filled with technological changes, thanks to the assistance of TECT.

The local community trust has made a significant contribution towards the purchase of new iPads and Chromebooks for the country school.

Principal Blake Carlin says they bought 110 new devices – 55 Chromebooks, and 45 iPads.

'It was done in a 50-50 partnership with TECT. They put up $17,000, while the Board of Trustees contributed $20,000. The remaining $3,000 came from the PTA. So it's been a real community effort.”

He says the school's Year 7 and 8 students each had devices prior to this purchase, making the overall ratio of devices to students now better than 2:1.

'The teachers are now looking at innovative ways to deliver their curriculum using this digital medium. The kids are over the moon. They're really appreciative, and embraced it. They all have their own Gmail accounts now.”

Janet Bilbe, who teaches new entrants in Room 1, has been in the profession for 40 years and wholly embraces the new technology. In particular, the Seesaw app on the devices allows her to take photos and videos of her students and share their progress directly with parents who also have the app.

'It's absolutely brilliant. Mum and Dad can see the progress of their children, while the kids realise their learning is appreciated by their parents,” she says.

Teachers can post general notices to a classroom page, visible to all parents, along with individual posts about pupils, visible only to that child's parents. Parents can then write comments and feedback of their own.

'One Mum told me she was busy at work one day, having a rotten morning, and she received a notification on Seesaw about her son's work. She saw him looking so pleased, and it just made her day.”

TECT has so far donated more than $3.3 million to community projects this year.