“That ICPA Qld lobbies the Queensland Department of Education (DoE) to review the suitability of EduVenture and associated QLearn/Canvas online learning requirements within Schools of Distance Education (SDEs) and ensure geographically isolated families continue to have access to comprehensive paper-based curriculum delivery options.”
Geographically isolated students face unique educational circumstances that differ significantly from those experienced in regional and urban settings. While online learning platforms can provide useful supplementary resources, increasing reliance on mandatory online participation and content uploads does not always reflect the realities of remote Queensland families.
Recent cybersecurity breaches involving the QLearn/Canvas platform have highlighted concerns regarding student privacy, online safety and the security of children’s personal information. These concerns are particularly relevant for geographically isolated families who are being encouraged to teach children safe online practices while simultaneously being required to upload photographs and videos of themselves completing assessment tasks.
Families are increasingly concerned that these requirements create conflicting messages around internet safety and unnecessarily expand children’s digital footprints from a young age.
Additionally, many geographically isolated families continue to experience variable internet connectivity, service interruptions, weather-related outages, limited bandwidth, and high data usage costs. Educational delivery models that rely heavily on video uploads, continuous online engagement, and large digital content requirements can place remote students at a disadvantage compared with their urban and regional peers.
For remote families managing station operations, multi-age teaching environments, and limited technical support, comprehensive paper-based curriculum resources remain essential to ensuring continuity of learning and equitable educational access.
Technology should enhance educational delivery for geographically isolated students, not replace practical and proven curriculum models that allow effective teaching within remote home classrooms.
ICPA therefore urges the Queensland Department of Education to work collaboratively with geographically isolated families to ensure curriculum delivery within SDE remains safe, practical, equitable, and appropriate for remote students.
