Pupils won't ruin tax-funded netbooks

SENIOR NSW education bureaucrats have angrily rejected suggestions that public school students will trash the 197,000 laptop computers to be provided for them next year using federal taxpayer funds.

The $98 million tender for the mini-laptops, also known as netbooks, was issued yesterday and is believed to be the single largest purchase ever of such devices.

A further $60 million will be spent rolling out a wireless computer network in 571 NSW public schools.

The states and territories have received about $2 billion from the Rudd Government to upgrade computers in schools, with the NSW Labor Government deciding to spend its share on netbooks that students between Years 9 and 12 can use at school and at home.

Many students in elite private schools are already provided with laptops.

While the NSW program has broad support among principals, teachers and parent groups, one principal has dismissed the plan as "crazy".

Ian Parnaby, the principal of Bossley Park High School in western Sydney, told a Sydney newspaper on Tuesday that the netbooks would be damaged "when kids throw them around".

But Stephen Wilson, the senior official in charge of information technology for the NSW Department of Education and Training, said Mr Parnaby was "not giving enough responsibility and trust to the students".

Mr Wilson said NSW had factored in an annual loss of one in 10 machines and repairs and replacements would be funded out of the $807 million NSW demanded Canberra add to the national program for on-costs.