Terms of reference 


AICTEC has been asked to provide strategic policy advice to COAG, MCEETYA and DEEWR regarding Digital Education Revolution implementation and related ICT issues.  In particular, AICTEC has been asked to provide advice on cross sectoral issues so that investments in the Digital Education Revolution can benefit education as a whole and on strategies to integrate investments in ICT with wider educational objectives.

AICTEC's work is set within the framework of COAG's national education priorities, national education and training goals agreed by MCEETYA and MCVTE, and the Joint Ministerial Statement on Information and Communications Technologies in Australian Education and Training: 2008-2011 endorsed by all Australian education and training Ministers in June 2008.

AICTEC Terms of Reference.

The provision of world class education and training environments is fundamental to ensuring Australians have the skills and knowledge required for successful participation in the economy and society.  Education and training environments must effectively respond to societies' changing expectations, promote life long learning and broaden options for learners that create pathways to productive and new careers.  Developing the potential of all learners to be confident, informed citizens, equipped for success and contributing to Australia's society and economy is central to Australia's education and training goals.

Information and communications technologies (ICT) are integral to contemporary society and provide powerful tools for education and training.  They are enabling the transformation of the curriculum and changing the way learners and educators operate, learn and interact.  Technologies provide the potential for access to a nationally consistent curriculum, collaborative communication and knowledge building tools, flexible and distance learning opportunities, seamless transition of students and information within and between institutions, engaging learning materials, online services and repositories of knowledge.

National collaboration across education and training jurisdictions, school systems and sectors can build on existing initiatives to:

  • improve access to networks and digital repositories of resources that are affordable, reusable, discoverable and shareable
  • develop and deploy policy and technical processes that enable the building of knowledge and resources, and the sharing of expertise for educational purposes.

AICTEC was endorsed by MCEETYA in 2001 to provide advice to all Australian Ministers for education and training on the economic and effective use of ICT in Australian education and training.  Traditional boundaries between educational sectors are merging.  AICTEC is the only national Committee to provide policy advice that is actively sought from representative bodies and developed through national collaboration and which accounts for the views of all education jurisdictions, school systems and sectors.

The goal of AICTEC is to encourage the development of technology enriched learning environments across all jurisdictions and sectors that enable students to achieve high quality learning outcomes and to productively contribute to Australia's society and economy.

AICTEC will act as an authoritative forum for cooperative and collaborative policy advice that supports the Ministerial Council for Education, Employment, Training and Youth Affairs, focusing particularly on the Digital Education Revolution component of the Education Revolution Agenda by such means as:

  • Advising the Council and other responsible authorities on effectively prioritising and deploying ICT in education and training
  • Obtaining and providing expert and specific sectoral advice on the strategic use of ICT in education and training and providing advice to Council and other responsible authorities about the recommendations of experts and sectors
  • Advising Council on the enablers of technology rich learning environments in education and training, including but not limited to:
    • Systems and architectures to support access, use, transfer and sharing of resources, information and knowledge between institutions, sectors and jurisdictions
    • Supporting educators in developing their capabilities
    • Secure and robust infrastructure including broadband
    • Affordable access to and use of online learning resources and knowledge
    • Maintaining a stable .edu.au Internet domain for all eligible education and training bodies and services in Australia.

Further, to formalise the AICTEC role in providing advice on the Digital Education Revolution, the Schooling Sub-group of the Council of Australian Government's (COAG) Productivity Agenda Working Group (PAWG) has asked AICTEC to 'provide strategic input in respect to the use of ICT in classrooms of the future and the considerations for school education authorities to be able to deliver on that vision.'


[pdf] AICTEC_Terms_Of_Reference_08.pdf [24 Kb]
Approved by MCEETYA on 18 April 2008.