IT Infrastructure & Management

Broadband Effort Touted as Good for Classroom, Budget

By Michele Molnar — September 17, 2013 1 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

The White House goal of assuring that 99 percent of the nation’s schools have access to high-speed broadband and wireless Internet within five years should offer this side benefit, an administration official says: making districts see that digital learning “is affordable and within our reach.”

The ConnectED initiative, launched by President Barack Obama in June, will create greater opportunities for states and school districts to make joint purchasing decisions that help lower the cost of educational technology and content, said Gene Sperling, the director of the National Economic Council and an assistant to the president for economic policy.

Speaking about ConnectED at the 2013 Educational Technology Summit in Washington last week, Mr. Sperling said that a lack of connected schools will “hold back the scale needed to pull in the low-cost educational devices, the content. ... School districts, schools, and states look at it and say, ‘It’s too expensive.’ ”

He cited Mooresville, N.C., as an example of how a successful digital conversion in a school district can improve outcomes—but also one that illustrates some of the cost challenges.

“It is number two in the state for student achievement,” he noted of the district. At the same time, it is 114th out of 115 districts in terms of per-student funding.

Mooresville showed what was possible when a school system broadens digital access, he said. But the district also is “leasing laptops each year, at [a cost of] probably $200 a year [per laptop]. They should have the ability to purchase a laptop for perhaps a fraction of that,” he said. “If Mooresville had the entire state of North Carolina” making purchasing on a statewide contract, the district could reduce the cost, he noted.

Terri Haas, chief financial officer for Mooresville, told Education Week the lease-purchase program costs the district about $950,000 per year, and the devices are usually upgraded every two years.

Mr. Sperling cautioned attendees at the Washington event that they should not view the ConnectED initiative primarily through the lens of dollars or numbers.

“Our lack of universal high-speed connectivity is the thing that holds back the entire educational ecosystem,” he said.

Related Tags:

A version of this article appeared in the September 18, 2013 edition of Education Week as Broadband Benefits Touted for Districts

Events

Federal Webinar The Trump Budget and Schools: Subscriber Exclusive Quick Hit
EdWeek subscribers, join this 30-minute webinar to find out what the latest federal policy changes mean for K-12 education.
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Curriculum Webinar
End Student Boredom: K-12 Publisher's Guide to 70% Engagement Boost
Calling all K-12 Publishers! Student engagement flatlining? Learn how to boost it by up to 70%.
Content provided by KITABOO
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
School & District Management
Moving the Needle on Attendance: What’s Working NOW
See how family engagement is improving attendance, and how to put it to work in schools.
Content provided by TalkingPoints

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
View Jobs
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
View Jobs
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
View Jobs
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.
View Jobs

Read Next

IT Infrastructure & Management Schools Brace for Tariff-Related Price Increases of Chromebooks and iPads
School-issued devices in many districts need to be replaced, but rising prices could prevent those plans.
6 min read
Students in Lynne Martin's 5th grade class study math using Chromebooks at Markham Elementary School in Oakland, Calif. on Sept. 5, 2019.
Students in Lynne Martin's 5th grade class study math using Chromebooks at Markham Elementary School in Oakland, Calif. on Sept. 5, 2019.
Paul Chinn/San Francisco Chronicle via AP
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
IT Infrastructure & Management Sponsor
ChromeOS Flex Extends Usability of End-of-Life Devices
As school technology budgets face increasing scrutiny, administrators seek innovative and cost-effective solutions for their existing device fleets. ChromeOS Flex has emerged as a powerful problem-solver, offering a way to revitalize aging PCs and Macs by extending their lifespan and bringing the benefits of ChromeOS to familiar hardware.
Content provided by Google for Education
chromeOS Save your devices and your budget with ChromeOS Flex
Photo provided by Google
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
IT Infrastructure & Management Sponsor
Why EDLA Matters More than You Think

Understanding the Invisible Systems That Make Schools Work

Content provided by ViewSonic
Seamless Google Integration Android(TM) EDLA-Certified ViewBoard(R) Interactive Display. Google Workspace for Education
Photo provided by ViewSonic