Esat BT Young Scientist Technology Exhibition 2005

Let me first thank the organisers and Esat BT for their kind invitation to address you at this opening ceremony. You may recall that I was here last year as Minister for Education and Science, and it is most heartening to be back with you today in my new rôle as Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources a Department with a high level of scientific involvement, in broadcasting, telecoms, marine, and of course in the energy and geology fields, each of which offers their own unique challenges.

The Young Scientist & Technology Exhibition is much more than an exhibition it is a cradle of development for keen young minds, an event that sets targets for students to aim for, and a starting point for so many careers in the borderless world of science and technology.

Ireland has earned worldwide renown as a centre of excellence in technological development, from the ICT sector to the pharmaceuticals and research fields. The standards of education in the sciences here are admired and respected everywhere.

The ready availability of such highly qualified people has attracted hi-tech companies from all over the world to set up shop in Ireland, offering opportunities for growth and development and helping to secure the future of the nation.

I mentioned some of the technical areas in which my Department is involved. One of these is information and communications technology, an area where nothing stands still, even for a moment.

Im sure that youre all aware of the Broadband For Schools initiative.

It is my pleasure here this evening to announce the results of the recent competitive tender process undertaken for the provision of free high-speed broadband and routers to all schools for the next three years. The project will involve installation of a mix of broadband technologies in schools, including wireless, fixed line (DSL) and satellite, and the service levels proposed will provide always-on high speed Internet access which will support a range of applications

The successful bidders for the Broadband for Schools contracts are: -

Digiweb 1,428 schools
Smart Telecom 1,041 schools
Irish Broadband 592 schools
ESAT BT 585 schools
Last Mile 215 schools
HS Data 87 schools

Eircom and Cisco Systems will provide the routers for each school, a key part of the broadband infrastructure.

The aggregate value of the contacts over the three years is approximately €20m, and more importantly this broadband will be provided free to schools. This project represents a true partnership between industry players and Government and the initiative will serve to benefit all those involved schools, students, the broadband and education industries and Government.

The world is changing education must meet those changes. Teachers are doing a wonderful job but teaching methods will need to change and adapt too. Think about it - todays classroom experience is not very different in some ways from those of the early 20th century. The syllabus reflects todays standards in pedagogy, which are among the highest in the world. Courses are designed for uniformity, and a need to set measurable and attainable goals. However, students still use chalk, blackboards, pencils and jotters. They still learn from a printed page. And then they go out after school and use the most advanced technological wonders of the age. PlayStations, PCs, mobile phones, games online, the whole world at their fingertips.

Outside of Japan, Ireland has the highest per capita ownership of Sony PlayStations in the world.

I think the time is coming when we should ask the people who design games like Need For Speed Underground 2 or FIFA Football 2005 to apply their considerable skills and talents to helping make the schools curriculum as fascinating as these games. Why not? In the not-too-distant future we may well look back and wonder how did we manage without it. Broadband for every school casts open the school gate to this rich tapestry of possibility. Robert Louis Stephenson once said that life is the permanent possibility of sensation. I think content rich digital curricula (enabled by high-speed broadband) can bring that permanent possibility of sensation to educative material!

In numbers of entries this years exhibition is by far the most successful to date. So much so that there is simply not enough room to display all of them here. In that respect, every project that has made it through to this stage is a winner already, and I must congratulate each and every participant. I want to stress also that every participant at every level is a winner and that the participation in what has become a national science movement is paramount in my view.

There will of course be an overall winner, and the judges are to be congratulated for their commitment and dedication to the difficult task of selection.

I know that every one of you, participant and visitor alike, will marvel at the sheer brilliance of the projects on show, and I once again thank Esat BT for their tremendous support.

I now declare the Esat BT Young Scientist & Technology Exhibition 2005 officially open. Thank you.

Ends