Covid Tech access fund set to return, but not as we know it

The government-run scheme to enable access to technology for students during the Covid-19 lockdown last year is due to return very soon, but concerns about the accessibility for distance students, alongside the loaned nature of devices, have been raised.  

Albany Students Association President Ben Austin says he is not certain when the new fund will be implemented but believes it may work differently from existing support systems. 

“From my understanding there is already a small one in place where the student has to come to an association or staff to get a referral. The current system has the opportunity for students to keep the devices whereas the new one funded by the government will be devices on loan for a period,” Ben says. 

Massey@Distance Co-Presidents Jax Watt and Jacalyn Clare say the course hasn’t been explicitly offered to distance students yet, possibly due to an assumption that they were already online and would not need aid. 

“We know there are students who had limited access to technology due to [Covid-19]. Children and parents alike studying from home may have put pressure on internet access or constrained the ability to study due to the whole family using one device, or as they study from work or public libraries,” they say. 

They add that there is a chance the initiative may not reach distance students due to the lack of wider advertisement and limited capacity of the service. “While we commend the University for offering continued solutions for students finding it difficult to access technology, we are concerned that these services were not explicitly outlined to most distance students due to the university not having the capacity to handle so many students all at once,” the Distance co-presidents say. 

Associate Director ITS Application Services Jacqui Hofmann says the ‘Technology Access for Learners’ scheme has been extended and Massey has agreed to participate. “We are waiting on some clarification from the Tertiary Education Commission on how we can best use the funding to help students as the scheme is only extended to the end of June at this stage. As always, we will communicate with students as soon as possible.”