The Smith Family’s peer-to-peer reading program, student2student, is going mobile to help more children from disadvantaged backgrounds across regional Australia improve their literacy following an extended partnership with Optus.

Optus has provided mobile handsets with pre-paid credit to 260 primary and early secondary level students without access to landline phones to enable them to participate in student2student. The 2011 program has been expanded to 25 locations across regional New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia, Tasmania and Queensland following the success of a pilot program last year with 50 students from Dubbo, Toowoomba and Orange.

The Smith Family’s student2student program matches students who need to improve their reading skills with older reading buddies who aretrained to help others develop their literacy skills. The home based program sees the students reading to their buddy over the phone three times a week,with the pair sharing the same book. The program is underpinned by research which shows that one of the best ways to support kids who have reading difficulties is for the help to come from others near their own age¹.

The mobile version of the program, delivered in partnership with Optus, is designed to engage disadvantaged children who do not have access to a landline and who would otherwise not be able to participate in reading sessions with their buddy.

Paul Henderson, Executive Director of Engagement at The Smith Family highlights how the partnership with Optus enables more students to improve their reading;

“Reading is very important for a child’s development and critical for their lifelong outcomes. However some disadvantaged children which we support are up to two years behind in their reading age at primary school.”

“Our student2student reading program has been successful in helping children to improve their reading and confidence, however some of the low SES families we support are from regional areas with no access to a landline and therefore are unable to take part. Now, with the support of Optus and the use of mobile technology, we will be able to extend access to the program to help more disadvantaged children with their reading.” Mr Henderson said.

Anthony Shiner, Optus Country General Manager said: “Building social inclusion and connecting disadvantaged young people to improve their education and future prospects plays a key role in Optus’ approach to supporting local communities. With this aim in mind, we are proud to partner with The Smith Family in helping children, some of which are in the most remote areas of regional Australia, to use mobile technology to improve their reading skills. We’re committed to working with The Smith Family to continue expanding the program and grow participation year on year.”

• Regional NSW: Barrack Heights, Coffs Harbour, Dubbo, Dapto, Nowra, Orange, Springfield, Tamworth, Tarrawanna
• Sydney Metro NSW: Alexandria Park, Claymore, Mount Druitt
• Queensland: Sunshine Coast, Toowoomba
• South Australia: Port Adelaide, Elizabeth Vale, Enfield, Onkaparinga
• Victoria: Bendigo, Shepparton
• Tasmania: Bridgewater/Gagebrook, Claremont/Chigwell, Rocherlea/Mayfield, Table Cape

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For more information, contact:
Liz Hunt or Gareth Watkins Bang PR; Tel: 02 9018 2222
Email: liz@bangpr.com.au / gareth@bangpr.com.au

Notes to Editors

About the student2student program
Literacy is one of the most important foundations for life. The impact of low literacy skills can negatively influence a child’s level of educational achievement, employability, earnings and social participation². student2student seeks to improve reading literacy in poor readers aged 8-12 years in communities where The Smith Family has a presence. The Smith Family’s student2student traditional fixed line delivery of the program has demonstrated the program’s positive impact on student reading rates with approximately 75% of students improving their reading age³.

Each participant in The Smith Family’s student2student pilot program will receive an Optus mobile handset, pre-paid credit, guidelines for responsible mobile phone use, and ongoing support from both Optus and The Smith Family to ensure they get the most out of the experience.

References:

1. Rohrbeck, C.A. et al. (2003). Peer-assisted learning interventions with elementary school students: a meta-analytic review. Journal of Educational Psychology, 95(2), 240-257
2. DEST (2005), Reading: National Inquiry into the Teaching of Literacy, Commonwealth of Australia, Canberra
3. Results from The Smith Family survey on students who participated in traditional fixed line delivery of student2student in 2009