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There can be little doubt that the introduction of broadband has changed the way children across the UK are educated.
Lessons have been digitalised to make them more accessible, fun and engaging for kids, while also giving them the IT skills they will undoubtedly need later in life.
Connectivity
One of the first things schools should do before implementing a new system, or indeed look into updating their existing one, is to consider the issue of bandwidth.
Getting the right bandwidth is one of the most important considerations to make as, put simply, if you do not have enough, your system will be unable to cope with the needs and demands of your school.
According to government advice, 100 megabits per second (Mbps) is an ample speed for the average British secondary school, while 10Mbps will usually suffice for a primary school.
It added that it is also advisable to look for an “uncontended” connection as they mean you won't have to share connections with any other customers.
When you do finally settle on a connection, it is always important to check there are no data limits as these can lead to unforeseen costs, especially when there is a potential for needing extra capacity beyond a certain download limit. There are a number of unlimited services available so there is no need to compromise.
Reliability
Some ten years ago, there was a real danger of the initial enthusiasm for online learning petering out, with school networks connected via ISDN often finding themselves overloaded, while the circuits themselves were also often unreliable.
Such a situation now is unthinkable, with reliable connectivity an integral part of the online learning process. It is therefore essential to ensure your provider can offer a detailed assessment of your connection and overall infrastructure during regular intervals.
Lightning fast
While a high broadband speed is hugely important in itself, actually installing the necessary infrastructure is also something that carries an amount of urgency.
Although much is made of the fact that schools are seemingly blessed with long holidays, the windows for any potential upheaval of infrastructure are still pretty small and the room for error is smaller still.
When implementing a new network cabling solution, there is no time for waiting around, meaning that finding the right supplier is crucial.
At Comtec we have a whole range of appropriate products, including the NetGear range of switches, routers and access points that suit a whole variety of commercial or large-scale applications.
Crucially, many of those products come with next-day delivery, meaning that there is no waiting around for the hardware you need.
It means that schools can minimise any worries of projects falling behind schedule, cutting the risk of disruption to teaching, which can have obvious detrimental effects on the learning experience.
