Report Says Schools Need 100Mbps Per 1,000 Users

alphadogg writes "American schools need mega-broadband networks — and they need them soon, a new report says. Specifically, U.S. educational institutions will need networks that deliver broadband performance of 100Mbps for every 1,000 students and staff members in time for the 2014-15 school year. That's the conclusion reached by the State Educational Technology Directors Association. Why the need for speed? For one thing, more and more schools are using online textbooks and collaboration tools, said Christine Fox, director of educational leadership and research at SETDA. Broadband access must be 'ubiquitous' and 'robust,' she said, adding that schools should think of broadband as a 'necessary utility,' not as an add-on. The report, called 'The Broadband Imperative,' further suggests that schools should upgrade their networks to support speeds of 1Gbps per 1,000 users in five years."

Moar speed!

[Sparticus789]

All the better to torrent with, my dear!

Re:100Mbps for..... text...books

[betterunixthanunix]

100Mbps for textbooks

It's a new DRM system.

Re:Caching?

[betterunixthanunix]

With that attitude, you would think that the point of textbooks is to pass knowledge on to other people, rather than to make money for textbook publishers...

Re:Caching?

[ColdWetDog]

It appears that you've gone off your meds again, number 980855.

Please return to the reeducation cell immediately.

Future Student Excuses

[pkinetics]

I submitted my homework, but the intertubes are full and until they are cleared you won't receive my homework.

Next up

[jones_supa]

Coming soon in Ask Slashdot: "I was assigned to set up a school network (about 100Mbps for 1000 users)..."

Re: Moar

[Anonymous Coward]

Because, The Cloud... It's always good!

Re:Caching?

[dnahelicase]

I suppose that local caching of something as relatively static as a textbook is out of the question? My dead-tree edition books were often cached for 5-20 years. Really, how frequently does arithmetic change from year to year? Literature? Science and "Social Studies" I buy as being a little more dynamic, but still within a year?

I'm not the person that would ever use the term "rofl", but if I ever did, it would be about this comment.

I find your rational thought and naivety amusing.

Caching a textbook locally would require a huge license and licensing system, or would certainly be illegal. Are you a pirate? Pirates would think that they can make local copies for their own use and the use of others in the name of education, but they would be doing harm to the industry. (Potentially millions or even billions of dollars in harm.)

Also, every textbook has to change every other year, or else the entire educational system dies. Everyone knows that. Being able to change every other week, while having an adjoining resources website, blog, and twitter feed will ensure that students are able to temporarily license access to this knowledge without any of the inherent evils that dead-tree format provided - such as copying, borrowing, reselling, or using once graduated.