Broadband Knowledge Center
The Washington-based Consortium for School Networking has launched a new Web site to help school districts address their growing bandwidth needs, such as how to prepare for higher volumes of online traffic on districts’ computer servers. The site points readers to “must read” articles and reports about bandwidth issues, provides links to webcasts and online tools to plan and measure bandwidth, and hosts discussion forums several times a year about topics relating to districts’ bandwidth.The site is still evolving, but it has the potential to be an excellent one-stop resource for chief technology officers hoping to solve the problems that arise from the increasing volume of traffic on district networks.
Mathematics Benchmarks
Created by Achieve Inc., a Washington-based nonprofit group that promotes high academic standards, and the Charles A. Dana Center at the University of Texas at Austin, this Web site outlines recommended math benchmarks from kindergarten through 12th grade. The benchmarks are derived from Achieve’s American Diploma Project, which gathered data on English and math for 18 months to determine what students should know in each grade in light of workplace tasks and postsecondary education expectations. The benchmarks are grouped into either elementary or secondary strands, and educators can view them by grade or subject. The site also provides links to resources—including online brochures and case studies—to help educators align curricula to the benchmarks and effectively incorporate them into the classroom.
