The ABC is launching an expanded schedule of free education content to support students, teachers and parents, with so many children forced to learn at home due to the coronavirus global pandemic.

To enhance its educational programming, ABC Education is working with state and territory education departments and other education providers to deliver additional curriculum-linked content to children of all ages.

ABC Managing Director David Anderson said the national broadcaster was ready to launch the extra resources, in line with its Charter requirement to broadcast programs of an educational nature. “With so many Australian children now studying at home or preparing to do so, the ABC is boosting its support for students, teachers and parents to help young Australians receive the education they need,” he said.

“Our expanded schedule will complement the many hours of education content already available on the ABC across multiple platforms and we will build on that programming as required. Australians trust and rely on the ABC and this is another way we can contribute to and support the community.”

From Tuesday 14 April – with students having started Term 2 or readying to do so, depending on their location – the ABC will extend its educational programming on ABC ME to support children and caregivers at home, from 10am to 3pm each weekday. The expanded schedule moves from blocks of primary school content in the mornings through to secondary school content in the afternoons, featuring programs such as Ecomaths, ScienceXplosion, Numberblocks and English on the Go.

The ABC will offer additional online support through its portal ABC Education, with access to more than 4000 free videos, interactive resources and games mapped to the Australian curriculum – across subjects such as English, maths, science, history, geography, media Literacy, financial literacy and the arts and technologies, including STEM. Sign up to the ABC Education weekly newsletter for engaging online resources, competitions, news and events to help teachers and parents.

Working in partnership with the states and territories, ABC Education will also create original teacher-led mini-lessons, which will be broadcast on the ABC Education portal and ABC ME, to support students learning at home. The NSW and Victorian education departments have provided initial financial assistance to help produce this content.

Behind The News is also ramping up its vital education offering to make sure parents and teachers have plenty of trusted, quality video content mapped to the Australian curriculum, including its daily and weekly programs Newsbreak and BTN Classroom.

BTN will expand its network of Rookie Reporters delivering news, views and opinions via mobile video, so that kids who are working remotely or in isolation will still have a voice in our news. Parents will also be able to access BTN’s teaching resources and lesson plans in the “Teachers” section of the BTN website.

ABC iview’s enhanced collection of carefully curated education content features informative and engaging programs across multiple subject areas, including BTN, The Storybuilding Tool Kit, This Place, Citizen Code and Teenage Boss.

Pre-schoolers are also in safe hands with trusted content on ABC Kids, ABC Kids listen and the ABC Early Education website, which includes Reflective Journal blog posts for educators and shows and podcasts across the five curriculum areas of family, community and culture, sustainability and nature, creativity and self-expression, STEM and health and wellbeing.

Special collections of learning content and family activities are also available on the newly enhanced ABC Kids app and ABC Kids Community Facebook page, which engages and inspires ongoing conversations with families, carers and educators.

James Merlino, Victorian Minister for Education, said it was great to partner with the ABC to ensure kids keep learning. “Learning from home is going to be new and challenging for everyone involved; students, their families and carers and for our teachers – it’s fantastic to partner with the ABC in expanding its educational programming.”

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For more information

Peter Munro

ABC Communications

munro.peter@abc.net.au