Hon Tariana Turia Speech for Computers in Homes Porirua's 1,000 families

Wednesday, 30 March 2011 13:02

The celebration of Porirua's 1,000 families participating in Computers in Homes, Lodge Place, Porirua, hosted by E-Learning Porirua Trust

Hon Tariana Turia - Minister for the Community and Voluntary Sector

 Wednesday 23 March 2011

( Delivered by Kathryn Paton on behalf of the Minister )

 

Thank you Graham (Kelly) for your introduction – and for your leadership as the founder and Chair of the e-Learning Porirua Trust.

I am so pleased to be here tonight, in the hub of Te Tai Hauauru; in Porirua City – where you have carved out a reputation for being a city prepared to stretch the boundaries and open its arms to all.

I am proud to see here my parliamentary colleagues –those from the debating chamber of 2011 and yesterday.

It is a night to celebrate – and so I acknowledge first and foremost the representatives of Digital Porirua Trust; the Computers in Homes families; all the volunteers that have made this concept come alive, including Rotary Club members and of course e-Learning Porirua Trustees.

I want to especially acknowledge Mayor Nick Leggett, Gary Simpson, Chief Executive of the Porirua City Council and other Porirua City councillors here tonight.   This region is blessed with having a Council which is truly representative of its people.

How wonderful it is to know that in a city where 75% of the population are aged under 45, their mayor is widely acknowledged as the Youngest Mayor in the Nation.

You also boast the country's youngest councillor with 19 year old Bronwyn Kropp; your Council includes youth educator Wayne Poutoa; and mother of four, Ana Coffey, in her early thirties.

I make this point because one of the issues our nation needs to most grapple with is how to best represent young people – and those who are driven by young people's interests at heart.

As well as that your Council includes two tangata whenua representatives, four Pasifika Councillors and the veteran Councillor Ken Douglas - it is an ideal prescription for inclusivity.

Now I am not actually here to promote the Porirua City Council as the next Super Council of the land – but I am here to promote diversity; innovation; entrepreneurship and the leadership of our future as founded in the rangatahi of today.

What is so exciting about this event tonight, is that it demonstrates that through collaboration our tamariki and whanau are taking on all the tools they need to connect into the digital world and ultimately the knowledge to help them determine their futures.

This event is to recognise a huge milestone for the e-Learning Porirua Trust's Computers in Homes programmes.

Tonight we celebrate the massive milestone of 1000 families including 1400 adults and about 3900 children from Porirua participating in this programme.

A recent survey of the participants in the Porirua programmes showed us some amazing outcomes;

·         48% of children were doing better at school;

·         32% of children's grades had improved; and

·         38% of parents indicated that they could now help their children with their homework.

Of those parents surveyed;

·         41% had undertaken training or an education course since they completed the programme.

·         23% had compiled a CV and applied for a job;

·         18% got a job or a better job.

These are really positive and meaningful results.

In fact they are breaking news headlines and I will certainly be doing all that I can to promote the good news coming out of Porirua through this programme.

When I was reading through the survey results I was taken with one of the comments made by a parent.  That parent revealed that they were now competing with their 9 year old daughter on the computer.

I did think – reflecting our experience with our own nine year old mokopuna – that perhaps it's time for me to be enrolling on the programme as well!

And I'll tell you a little story that has made me appreciate just how technologically astute our young ones are.

Our 9 year old princess, Piata, learns the piano and it is a frequent challenge to encourage her to see practice as something she really wants to do.

In our home down here we have an electric piano where you can also pre-programme different functions.   The other night her koro was sitting in the lounge, listening to his precious mokopuna playing the piano and he was struck by just how consistently the pieces were being played – in fact they all sounded absolutely identical.

He decided he'd take a look for himself – goes into the piano room and sees Miss Piata sitting with her legs up, happily reading a book.

The clever little thing had programmed the digital memory in the piano so that the same refrain kept playing again and again and again.

While I couldn't help but laugh it showed me in an instant just how techno-savvy our young people are – and that we should celebrate that, cherish it, and if possible learn from their leadership to take us beyond our own comfort zones.

For I have to admit another one of the parent comments that I connected to, was the simple statement "thank you for not making me feel like an idiot".

In 2007, when presenting at the Digital Future Summit, Laurence Zwimpfer of 2020 Communications Trust had a message for government and business;

"Trust us; collaborate with us; and invest with us."

The Porirua City Community IT Educational Trust is all about investing in our future; trusting in our potential – and simply not allowing any of us to feel like idiots.

In 2010, when I went to my parliamentary colleagues to seek funding for the Digital Literacy and Connection Fund it was very exciting to be advocating for programmes that I know deliver meaningful results and positive outcomes for communities.

And I have been so proud of the $8 million investment that I announced last year for digital literacy and connection.

The key to better educational outcomes, employment gains, better connectivity and communication comes through being digitally literate.

And so, again, I want to commend the vision and the commitment of the e-Learning Porirua Trust; alongside the Porirua City Council and the Digital Porirua Trust in your determination to establish the Digital Porirua Strategy.

The success of your project has been in making all the connections explicit – joining the dots.

E-Learning Porirua Trust also manages one of the Computer Access Points from its rooms at the Porirua Returned Services Association building.

In 2006 and 2008, the Digital Porirua Trust - established by the Porirua City Council and the Porirua business community received funding through the Department of Internal Affairs Community Partnership Fund to set up Community Access Points in the city.

Community Access Points provide computers and training for local residents who may wish to access the Internet, prepare documents, use email, buy goods online, or use social network sites.  They are located at places people can easily access such as church halls, marae, community centres and schools.  It is a fantastic concept.

The Community Access Point project has been boosted by over 200 free computers donated in 2008 by Hewlett Packard and another $140,000 worth of software donated by Microsoft NZ to the e-Learning Porirua Trust.  Some of the donated computers were given to Computers in Homes families, and others were used to set up some of the Computer Access Points around the city.

One of the Trust's goals is to assist 24 low decile schools in Porirua to buy new computers.   They provide a three-year interest-free loan to the schools to purchase computers and software.  Over the past year the Trust has provided loans to the total value of nearly $500,000 to 11 schools.

Providing the funding in the form of a loan means the money can effectively be used over and over by more schools.

I could go on all night – but I think you get the picture!

There is no doubt in my mind that this funding has led to better collaboration between our community, local business and government.

But most exciting of all – this programme has been in providing families with the support, the skills and the inspiration to know they can keep up with their nine year olds; they can keep up with the times; and they can keep faith with their dreams and aspirations as whanau to invest in a cycle of success.

My aroha and my sincere congratulations to you all.

Tena tatou katoa