Obama announces more efforts to bring high-speed broadband to schools
As the rest of the world outpaces the U.S. in terms of technologically equipping its students, President Obama on Wednesday announced new steps to bring the U.S. up to speed.
Right now, 68 percent of U.S. school districts report that not a single school in their district can meet high-speed connectivity goals.
"That's not good, since we invented the Internet," Mr. Obama said at the White House to dozens of superintendents from across the country. He noted that many teachers "literally don't have the bandwidth" to embrace new digital teaching tools.
Specifically, Mr. Obama announced that the Department of Education is rolling out new guidelines for schools that are attempting to improve their technological infrastructure, acquiring new digital tools for learning and setting policies for using those new technologies. The Department of Education is also issuing a new toolkit to help school districts building digital learning plans.
Additionally, the president announced that two companies that offer online courses, EdX and Coursera, are offering expanded access to virtual learning for teachers and students. EdX is providing free access for students to all Advanced Placement-level courses it offers, as well as free access to teacher development courses. Coursera is providing free online professional development courses for teachers, allowing them to complete certificates for continuing education credits.
"We are here to take another step toward making sure all of our kids get the education they need in the 21st Century," Mr. Obama said.
The president cited some positive developments in education, noting that the high school graduation rate is the highest on record and that more young people are earning college degrees than ever before. However, he said, other countries are "trying to out-educate us" by embracing technology.
For example, 100 percent of schools in South Korea have high-speed Internet access and all students this fall will be equipped with digital textbooks. In Uruguay, every student is equipped with digital devices. Singapore, meanwhile, is equipping every school with broadband that's over 40 times faster than the connection in the average American home.
Wednesday's announcements are part of Mr. Obama's plan, launched last year, to connect 99 percent of students with high-speed Internet within five years.
Earlier this week, Federal Communication Commission Chairman Tom Wheeler announced his plan to increase investments in the E-rate program, which provides support for high-speed connectivity in schools, by $1.5 billion annually. The FCC will consider the proposal in December.