Focusing on ICT in rural and regional education in Australia

National priorities set by an Australian ministerial taskforce provide clear guidelines to develop pedagogy that integrates information and communications technology (ICT). Although these guidelines do not specifically address rural and regional school needs, the two priorities - (1) promoting pedagogic leadership and (2) creating new learning environments - are of particular interest. But how are these priorities reflected in the realities of rural and regional schools? Focus group interviews were conducted at a selection of rural and regional schools in each state and territory across Australia. These provided teachers, parents and students with the opportunity to identify key issues in relation to ICT in their schools. Issues identified by the focus groups were: the state of equipment in schools, comparability between home and school ICT experiences for students, pedagogical approaches, leadership, professional development and availability of ICT specialist teachers