Digital Citizenship
School Education Advisory Committee
Terms of Reference
1. Function of the Committee
The Committee will provide advice on:
“Opportunities to strengthen the partnership between parents and schools to enable the
setting of consistent and high expectations for the use of ICT by students and teachers 1in
the ACT.”
More broadly the Committee will examine best practice, both in use of technology in our schools, as
well as leading examples of school community adoption of new technology.
The Committee will be established for six months only, from July 2015 to December 2015. The
Committee is a topic specific, advisory body and does not have decision making functions.
2. Membership
The School Education Advisory Committee – Digital Citizenship - will consist of a Chair and seven
members who have particular expertise in use of technology in education. The Committee will be
supported by a reference group of education stakeholders.
Membership of the School Education Advisory Committee – Digital Citizenship:
 Mr Craig Curry - Chair
 Mr Alastair MacGibbon – Australian Children’s e-Safety Commissioner
 Ms Samantha Yorke - Google, Public Policy and Government Affairs
 Ms Charuni Weerasooriya – Parent representative and former President of the Association
of Parents and Friends of ACT Schools Inc.
 Ms Belinda Bartlett – Principal Alfred Deakin High School
 Mr Matthew Purcell – Information and Software Technology Teacher, Canberra Grammar
School, Microsoft Leading Educator 2014
 Mr Thomas Duck – Student, Mount Stromlo High School
 Mr Mark Huxley – Chief Information Officer, Education and Training Directorate
3. Chair
The Chair of the Committee is responsible for the proper functioning of the Committee. The Chair is
responsible for setting the policies and procedures of the Committee and determining the manner in
which the Committee will operate within the scope of the terms of reference.
Terms of Reference amended to include “teachers”, approved by Minister of Education and Training 16 September
2015.
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4. Frequency of Meetings and Quorum
The Committee will meet on the following dates:
 Tuesday 18 August 2015
 Thursday 17 September 2015
 Thursday 15 October 2015
 Wednesday 11 November 2015
A minimum of 5 members are required for a quorum, proxy representatives are not permitted.
Members are responsible for declaring any conflict of interest that may arise due to the work of the
Committee.
5. Secretariat Support
Secretariat support is to be provided by the Education and Training Directorate. Minutes and
attendance will be recorded and provided to members for agreement.
6. Reporting Mechanism
The Committee, in consultation with the Directorate, will provide advice regarding the topic to the
Minister for Education and Training in December 2015 with a written report in a suitable format for
publishing online.
7. Reference Group
A sub-committee will be formed from education stakeholders to support the Committee. This group
will be known as the Reference Group on Digital Citizenship and will consist of representatives from the
following groups and organisations:
 Three ACT students, one from each sector (public, catholic and independent schools)
 Education and Training Directorate, Catholic Education Office and Association of
Independent Schools
 ACT Council of P&C Associations and The Association of Parents and Friends of ACT Schools
 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Elected Body
 the Youth Coalition
 a Community representative (YWCA for the work leading the Computer Club House
implementation at Richardson Primary School)
 Australian Education Union and the Independent Education Union
 ACT Policing
The Reference Group will meet on two occasions with specific topics:
 Thursday 24 September 2015 – Topic: Cyber Safety
 Thursday 29 October 2015 – Topic: Digital Literacy
The Chair of the Committee is also responsible for the appropriate administration and functions of the
Reference group. The Education and Training Directorate will provide secretariat support to the
Reference Group.
Joy Burch MLA
Minister for Education and Training
6 August 2015
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