Across the country, students in a number of schools are already connecting to the national information infrastructure (NII), also called the "information superhighway," and tapping into an array of resources that can help them build valuable information, computer, and networking skills.
The NII is a collection of electronic networks providing access to applications-programs, services, and communications-via computers, telephones, and video equipment. It comprises thousands of local area and wide area networks. Local area networks connect computers, printers, and other equipment in one room or building. Examples of local area networks include the electronic linkages among desktop computers present in most business offices and school computer labs, or the connections between the computers at the local Department of Motor Vehicles office. Wide area networks link devices in multiple or distant locations, like the public telephone system that transmits telephone calls or the cable television system that distributes programming throughout a city. The Internet, which many people use to link computers together, is yet another wide area network and one that is employed by many schools. Wide and local area networks can transmit information using telephone lines, cellular networks, satellite links, cable systems, or some combination of these.
A network typically increases in value as more users gain access to it. The public telephone network is valuable because almost everyone has a telephone and uses the network. Likewise, fax machines quickly became required business tools once enough machines were in use. The same is becoming true of computer networks. Electronic mail addresses, once the province of computer nerds and academics, are now becoming common.
A growing range of applications are available through the NII. On-line services like America On-Line, Prodigy, and Compuserve (which include wide area networks) allow users from around the globe to access many types of information, like stock market quotes or entertainment listings, and to electronically purchase services, like floral deliveries or research requests. Communities such as Charlotte, North Carolina, have networked the public library and government offices to provide residents with access to job listings and announcements of community events. Video and telephone conferences are available through the NII from a variety of service providers. These applications and services will keep expanding as technology evolves and on-line activity grows.
Many educational applications can be found on the information superhighway. For example, National Geographic's Kids Network allows students from around the country to participate jointly in science experiments on-line. Channel One delivers education-focused news programming to thousands of schools each morning through its satellite system. Cable in the Classroom, a consortium of cable operating companies, delivers over 500 hours of educational programming each month. Students in rural parts of the Guilford County, North Carolina, school district are now able to take pre-college physics-from a teacher at another, larger high school-by using the district's new distance learning facilities and connection to the North Carolina Information Highway. Administrators in a California school district use a videoconferencing system that operates over the local cable television network to discuss best practices and new policies; these conversations rarely took place before. In a number of districts, students, teachers, administrators, and parents are discovering the increased communications made possible by electronic mail. Similar to the broader business and consumer uses of the NII, the quality and quantity of available educational services will expand as the NII develops.
The foregoing describes a little of what a school can do with network access. But not all educational applications are being delivered over networks today. In fact, many high-quality educational applications are available in "stand-alone" format. A host of course materials are available on videotape and laserdiscs. Skill-building CD-ROM simulation programs and other software for computers account for the vast majority of electronic content sold today to the schools. The line between stand-alone and networked applications is not always clear, however. As networks develop, many applications available only in stand-alone form may be delivered more cheaply and conveniently over networks in the future.
The services accessible by any given user depend on the platform (computer, video or voice) and bandwidth available to the user (see Exhibit 1: "Applications Landscape"). Bandwidth refers to the amount of information that can be transmitted over a network within a given time. Just as only so much water can flow through a 12" drain pipe, networks also have capacity limitations. These limitations are typically measured by the number of pieces of digital information, or "bits," that can be transmitted per second. Typical telephone lines (called POTS lines) are technically capable of moving up to 34 thousand bits per second (kbps), though 14.4 kbps connections are most common today. To the average student connected to the Internet via a telephone line, this means waiting 30 seconds or more for one full-color computer screen of information. However, faster telephone services are becoming more widely available. ISDN ("Integrated Services Digital Network") lines provide for speeds starting at 56 kbps, which significantly reduces the time required to receive one screen of information. And some schools are accessing networks through high-speed T-1 telephone lines, which operate at over 1.5 million bit! >s per second (mbps) and allow 24 students fast, concurrent access to networks.
There are certain applications that require even more bandwidth, like the amount available through fiber optic or coaxial cable. These new services make extensive use of audio and video, and include video-on-demand, desktop videoconferencing and whiteboarding, virtual field trips via video networks, and networked simulations. At least one company, The Lightspan Partnership, plans to use high-speed broadband networks and video equipment to transmit interactive curricular materials into both classrooms and homes. While most of the educational applications available today do not require fast, high-capacity broadband connections, greater bandwidth would enhance the quality and speed of existing applications, as well as encourage developers to take advantage of the new capabilities.
How fast can the average school expect to gain access to broadband networks? Although the answer is quite uncertain, it seems likely that broadband will not be widely available until sometime in the early 21st century. The answer depends on a number of developments in the regulation of telecommunications companies, the state of competition between those providers, and market demand for enhanced services requiring broadband technology. Some states-including North Carolina, Iowa, and Hawaii-have taken steps to accelerate the deployment of broadband networks in the public realm. Schools in these states have access to such networks today, though some find the price high relative to other technology items. Other states, including Kentucky, are currently in the process of designing their broadband networks. While such efforts are important, schools can get started on connecting to the information superhighway now, even if they do not have broadband access yet.
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