08/23/13
Internet Vital to Modern Education
According to the FCC, “broadband investment will help us lead the world in 21st century educational innovation.” The FCC has created three programs that will assist in the effort to expand educational innovation throughout our nation’s schools, colleges, and universities, both private and public.
Learning On-the-Go aims to support off-campus wireless connectivity for mobile learning devices; Super-Fast Fiber will help bring affordable, super-fast fiber connections to America's schools and libraries with the assistance of the new E-Rate Order; and School Spots which gives schools the option to provide Internet access to the local community after students go home.
Recently, President Obama announced an effort to connect 99 percent of America's students to high-speed Internet over the next five years; fitting, as the landscape of classroom learning is evolving to a 50/50 blended learning environment, a combination of traditional face-to-face instruction and online courses. Connected Tennessee published a report in May 2013 detailing the opportunities created for all types of learners with the adoption of broadband and highlighting that more than one-half of parents (55%) report that their children use their home Internet service for schoolwork and 60% say that their children use the Internet at their schools.
Lots of countries around the world have been, and are, engaged in efforts to connect all of their schools to the Internet – and for those schools that are already connected, to connect them faster. Closer to home, two new schools in Knox County, Carter Elementary and Northshore Elementary, started this academic school year with wireless Internet throughout, and every classroom has at least five pieces of technology, which generally includes Apple computers, iPads, a teacher’s laptop, and an interactive whiteboard.
Technology and digital learning is not about replacing traditional learning but their use is a way to create new ways to learn. And, for learners here in the U.S., it is a way to stay competitive against their counterparts in other countries.