With classrooms from coast to coast locked up and teachers as well as students stuck at home, the ability to teach remotely has never been more important. But it takes more than a webcam, a nimble teacher and some digital content to make it all work, according to Mo Katibeh, executive vice president and chief marketing officer at AT&T Business. An 18-year veteran of AT&T, Katibeh is responsible for getting data to more than 3 million customers. 

Due to social distancing requirements, we had an email conversation in early April about the role of data and communications links in remote learning. 

Tech & Learning: How important is broadband data to curriculum today? 

Mo Katibeh: The nationwide massive shift to eLearning means that broadband data is absolutely necessary for K-12 and higher-ed students. In addition to using technology for homework assignments, our education customers see the need for their students to have broadband access to investigate, explore, research and respond to learning assignments. And, the need is just as important for teachers and administrators, who not only need bandwidth, but highly secure data to conduct their jobs. 

T&L: Should the students’ experience at home be equivalent to the one at school? 

MK: We know that the virtual learning experience won’t always be equivalent to a classroom experience. But there are also many benefits to eLearning. Right now, education experts across the country are trying to determine what is the optimal amount of video conferencing, independent study and use of other online resources. There isn’t necessarily one answer. 

We are seeing teachers who use video applications for teaching classes and also use it during times of independent study for students to ask questions. Other educators are gathering their classes together in the morning and then allowing students to work on their lessons throughout the day. There are many models right now depending on the age, grade and content. 

T&L: Is video an increasingly popular way to teach? 

Yes, at every level of education. Video is extremely popular in higher education and used extensively for online degree programs. Some colleges are even using programs for incoming freshmen with the plan to move students into the classroom in later years. This allows higher acceptance rates without the limitations of on-campus housing. 

Most K-12 teachers use video content to support their own teaching and for occasional collaboration with experts outside the classroom. Yet, direct delivery of instruction via video is not prevalent for K-12. There are many innovative teachers using video content with their students during the COVID-19 crisis. 

T&L: What are the delivery choices these days(LTE, 5G, Wi-Fi, phone hotspot, stationary wireless, ...)? 

MK: Yes, all of the above. The right answer depends on where you are, of course. Many students will be using their home Wi-Fi. However, mobile broadband also plays a key role. 

T&L: What is AT&T doing to make the transition to home teaching and learning easier? 

MK: Moving the classroom into the home requires that every student has access to the Internet. We launched an unlimited wireless data offer for new lines, at no cost for 60 days, to qualified public and private K-12 schools, colleges and universities.  

Schools also need to ensure they can block or filter internet content that can be harmful to students. We’ve included a content-filtering solution in our offer to help schools protect the children in their care. 

To further support Internet access to communities across the country, we’ve expanded our low-cost option for home Internet service with Access from AT&T program. And, we’re also offering video conferencing solutions that support students, teachers, and entire administrations.

T&L: Has the company seen a big increase in the use of broadband data since schools have closed? 

MK: Yes. We have seen increases in traffic, for example audio/video conferencing minutes. As of April 6th, we’ve had an overall a 23 percent increase in data traffic versus a similar day in February, but this includes things other than teaching. 

Overall, our network is performing very well. Our employees are working around the clock installing, maintaining and repairing our network so our customers can communicate with each other and stay connected. We are adapting and adding capacity when and where needed to address the minimal congestion resulting from the shift of traffic from work and school to home. 

Comcast today announced steps to help ensure people stay connected to the internet as more schools suspend classes and companies encourage employees to work from home due to the coronavirus. 

Comcast is taking steps to implement the following new policies for the next 60 days, and other initiatives: 

• Xfinity WiFi Free For Everyone: Xfinity WiFi hotspots across the country will be available to anyone who needs them for free – including non-Xfinity Internet subscribers. For a map of Xfinity WiFi hotspots, visit www.xfinity.com/wifi. 
• Pausing Data Plans:  Data plans will be paused for 60 days giving all customers Unlimited data for no additional charge.
• No Disconnects or Late Fees: Customers who contact comcast to make arrangements will not have their service disconnected or late fees charged. 
• Internet Essentials Free to New Customers: New customers will receive 60 days of complimentary Internet Essentials service, which is normally available to all qualified low-income households for $9.95/month. 
• News, Information and Educational Content on X1 and Flex: Comcast has created new educational collections for all grade levels in partnership with Common Sense Media.
• 24x7 Network Monitoring:  Comcast engineers and technicians staff network operations centers 24/7 to ensure network performance and reliability. 

For more information and updates from Comcast related to Coronavirus, visit: http://www.comcastcorporation.com/COVID-19/

The Institute for Emerging Issues (IEI) at NC State University today announced formation of Building a New Digital Economy in NC (BAND-NC), a new support program designed to make the state “first in digital inclusion.” 

BAND-NC, which  launched with initial support from Roanoke Electric Cooperative and the North Carolina’s Electric Cooperatives, in partnership with the NC Broadband Infrastructure Office (BIO), will provide grants to counties to develop plans to increase the percentage of their residents that adopt and are able to use broadband services. BAND-NC seeks to help North Carolina become the first state in the nation where every county has a digital inclusion plan by the end of 2022. 

Digital inclusion plans will include strategies to increase access to devices and make broadband affordable to more people. They also aim to equip a range of stakeholders with knowledge of how to utilize broadband: enabling young learners to do homework online and older learners to retrain online, expanding job possibilities through telework, improving access to telehealth services, expanding business markets, improving crop yields and adding efficiency to farm operations. 

Data from the NC Broadband Infrastructure Office show disparities in adoption of broadband services, with both a rural-urban and an income divide. Rural households subscribe at lower rates than urban households (as low as 49.7% in Graham County and as high as 89.7% in Wake County). Households making under $20,000 a year subscribe at a 51.2% rate compared to 93.8% of those making $75,000 or more a year. 

As part of BAND-NC, the state Broadband Office and IEI will host a series of meetings to assist community leaders in developing and implementing county-level digital inclusion plans. Roanoke Electric’s work will support development of plans in Bertie, Halifax, Hertford, Northampton, Gates, Perquimans and Chowan counties, while North Carolina’s Electric Cooperatives will fund three selected county plans from among its 93-county service area. 

Over the next few months, the Institute for Emerging Issues is seeking other investors in BAND-NC, with the goal of making $5,000 grants available across the state to counties developing digital inclusion plans.  Interested counties would submit plans August 6 for review on a competitive basis, with selected plans receiving grants to begin implementing their initial strategies. 

To see a full listing of North Carolina broadband adoption rates, by county and income level, go to iei.ncsu.edu/band-nc-data/

Today, EducationSuperHighway released its annual State of the States report, highlighting the completion of its mission to close the K-12 classroom connectivity gap. Ninety-nine percent of America’s schools now have high-speed broadband connections capable of providing enough bandwidth to enable their students and teachers to use technology in the classroom. 

Highlights from the 2019 State of the States report include: 

• The number of students who have access to broadband at the FCC’s original goal of 100kbps per student has increased from 4 million in 2013 to 46.3 million today.
• The cost of Internet access for schools has declined 90 percent since 2013.
• Since 2015, school districts have invested nearly $5 billion in K-12 Wi-Fi networks.
• Ninety-nine percent of America’s K-12 public schools have the fiber-optic connections needed to meet future connectivity needs.
• Over five years, eighty-one governors in all 50 states joined the effort to close the classroom connectivity gap.

The State of the States report also urges state leaders to ensure that districts don’t miss opportunities to continue to upgrade connectivity in schools in order to drive innovation in K-12 classrooms. 

To learn more, visit the full report here: stateofthestates.educationsuperhighway.org

Funds For Learning has released findings from its ninth annual E-Rate Trends Report. 

Results reveal that the E-rate program remains critical in establishing broadband connectivity for schools and libraries. Key provisions of the 2014 E-rate Order that expanded federal support for broadband internet connections will expire in 2020. The FCC calls upon stakeholders to present insights to determine how the program will serve schools and libraries in the upcoming decade.

Key 2019 survey findings include: 

• Digital learning continues to explode. 88 percent of applicants expect bandwidth needs of schools and libraries to increase in the next three years.
• New admin creates positive results. 81 percent of applicants are satisfied with E-rate’s management under Radha Sekar, FCC Chairman Pai’s pick to improve customer service.
• Barriers to internet still exist. 82 percent of applicants agree that insufficient internet access to home of students or library patrons is significant issue in their community.
• New policies yield lower prices. 70 percent of applicants agree that E-rate competitive bidding rules are lowering prices for their internet access services.
• Wi-Fi remains mission critical. 88 percent of applicants feel Wi-Fi is extremely important in fulfilling their mission. 79 percent of applicants in FY18 cited the same need, showing a consistent trend in Wi-Fi access for schools and libraries.

Visit https://www.fundsforlearning.com/2019ErateTrends to download the complete 2019 Trends Report.

SETDA, the principal membership association of U.S. state and territorial digital learning leaders, today released a new national report, State K-12 Broadband Leadership: Driving Connectivity, Access and Student Success. This report highlights the impact of state leadership in driving policy decisions at the state level to support broadband networks, bandwidth capacity, Wi-Fi implementation, and off campus access for low-income families. Educators, policy makers and the private sector can benefit from organized and accessible information regarding states’ K12 broadband approaches. The work includes examples of states providing leadership for effective and efficient broadband and Wi-Fi implementation and case studies for Connecticut, Kentucky and Minnesota. Accompanying this report is an online State K12 Broadband Leadership map which includes an overview of the approach for broadband implementation for all states and Guam. 

Full Report
Online State K12 Broadband Leadership Map

Digital equity is one of the most complex and urgent issues facing 21st-century educators. It’s an economic concern, as schools consider how they can ensure equal access for all. And it raises questions about gender and race: How can schools inspire more girls and students of color to pursue STEM? Creating authentic learning opportunities to equip a diverse body of students to identify and solve the world’s problems will require risk and change. Many educators are looking beneath the surface inequities of devices and connectivity to consider how digital tools can revolutionize learning and address even deeper inequities.

DEFINING EQUITY: EMPATHY, AUTHENTICITY, AND ACCESS

“Equity is empathy in action,” says Dr. Angelina Walker, principal of John H. Amesse Elementary at Denver Public Schools. Living digital equity involves thinking of each child and their individual and communal needs and actively seeking to provide access, resources, opportunity, standards, and support to all children, “especially groups that are and have been historically marginalized.”

Although we often talk about digital equity in terms of trying to fill deficits, says Sean Wybrant, digital media studies teacher at William J. Palmer High School in Colorado Springs, his approach is also personalized and relational. “Equity is making sure every kid gets what they need to pursue their goals and be part of creating their future with authentic, meaningful projects.” And it’s essential that a diverse body of students learn to think critically, because they all see and experience different challenges. Wybrant cites the North Dakota Access Pipeline as an example. “The people who had the problem didn’t have access to solve it.”

• Closing the Achievement Gap: The Road from Recovery to Restart
• Remote Learning and Digital Equity: Best Practices
• Remote Learning and Digital Equity: Challenges and Opportunities

Another aspect of inequity and access can be seen in the consequences of restrictive technology use agreements and imposing technology fees in schools with high free and reduced lunch populations, says Jeffrey McMahon, STEAM teacher leader at John H. Amesse Elementary. He likens these practices to taking away students’ encyclopedias, through which they find knowledge and begin to make choices that will lead to advocacy for others and for themselves. In the same way, he says, confiscating devices as punishment amounts to the same thing as taking away paper, pencils, textbooks—basic, essential tools for learning. In contrast, McMahon has witnessed students struggling with difficult circumstances transformed by opportunities to succeed in a STEAM lab setting where they’re given access to tools, the freedom to create, and guidance and support in using technology.

REDRESSING INEQUITY: BEYOND CODING

“Digital inequity is the thoughtful and intentional result of many interlocking systems of oppression. Treating it as an intentional act and not a foregone byproduct acknowledges the inequitable history from which it arises and the many tangible ways it can be reversed,” says Wisdom Amouzou, co-founder and executive director of Empower Community High School in Aurora, Colorado.

Wybrant and Amouzou are both concerned that “teaching coding to all” is sometimes seen as the soundbite solution to deep-seated systemic issues. The digital divide will not be bridged simply by coding but “by young leaders who have been educated to transform their reality” says Amouzou. “Equity is not that everyone knows how to write a loop but that they understand why it matters and how a loop can help people,” says Wybrant.

“Increasing digital access without transforming the fundamental systems at play will lead to the same social structures and inequities,” says Amouzou. “We might see more students of color and low-income students (increasingly white) on computers, but will they still be at the bottom of the totem pole?”

This transformation involves integration and collaboration. “Digital equity is about so much more than the device—it’s about how they’re using the tool,” say Jessica Martin and Meredith Stolte, co-founders of Colorado’s Aurora Community School, as they “learn to integrate content, innovation, technology, and life skills.” While many “students and families have access to digital tools for internet searches and solitary activities,” the role of the 21st-century educator is “to help students learn how to use the tools they have in new and collaborative ways.”

CONNECTION AND CO-CREATION ARE KEY

“To inspire more students of color to pursue STEM, we have to redefine what excellent STEM instruction and curriculum look like,” says Amouzou. Instead of lectures and labs that are disconnected from everyday reality, students need to “remix the content they’ve internalized” to create solutions for real people. This remixing, Wybrant says, involves developing an understanding of what problems can and cannot be solved with technology, learning how to source the necessary tools and work on a team, and discerning scope and scale.

New models of learning, Amouzou says, need to be co-created by educators “with the students and communities they serve.” It’s nuanced, time-intensive work, and requires that, as Wybrant says, “more people engage in better conversations.”

Finding solutions also requires listening to communities and learners, says Walker. She began to dialogue, brainstorm, and research with students last year about an underutilized space in the school. And now they have a STEAM lab, “a space where every learner and adult can play, build, and dream.” And in these spaces, instead of being told how they’re doing, says McMahon, the students’ “self-reflection, personal goal-setting, and self-awareness are the driving forces.”

REPRESENTATION: SEEING PEOPLE LIKE ME SUCCEEDING IN STEM

It’s critical, says McMahon, to make connections within the STEAM community and show students that people who represent them can be successful in STEAM fields. “Children need to see others, who look like them, doing work in the field,” and have opportunities to learn alongside them to solve problems they see in the world around them, say Martin and Stolte. At Aurora Community School this year, for example, “middle-school students will work alongside experts from the Youth Empowerment Broadcasting Organization (YEBO) to learn how to use media arts to uplift their unique identities and social justice causes.”

Melissa Schwass, ChickTech Denver’s High School Program Director, says that the more different voices there are at the table, bringing distinctive approaches to troubleshooting and problem solving, the more richly and rapidly technology will develop to address the issues we face. For ChickTech, that means intentionally targeting a diverse demographic for participation in their year-long program of workshops and activities. Schwass says that engaging women and girls in technology requires an emphasis on creativity, design, and thinking outside the box in addition to building relationships with peers and mentors. “Girls are excited when they see tech isn’t just about sitting behind a desk,” Schwass says. As girls who built robots, LED bracelets and tote bags, mobile apps, and websites said, “This is so much cooler than we thought.”

While women hold the majority of college degrees, Schwass says, they have less than 30 percent representation in STEM jobs and more than double the turnover of men. The Denver chapter is one of 22 across North America, and they’re currently accepting nominations from schools and non-profits for the 2018–19 school year.

THE PERMEABLE CLASSROOM: PROJECTS TO CHANGE THE WORLD

HackSchool launched at STRIVE Prep – Excel in Denver in 2015 through a Kickstarter to provide students of color with more access to STEM opportunities. With access to a makerspace and tools like a 3D printer and laser cutter, students have identified needs and created projects including a quadcopter to deliver food to people without easy access to nutritious food and models to help students at a school for the blind in India learn about concepts that traditionally rely on diagrams in textbooks (e.g., the human heart and the atom). Through these and other projects responding to real needs, HackSchool students have honed their knowledge of science and math in addition to developing skills like perseverance and teamwork.

“Every student has a problem they want to solve,” says Wybrant, and he’s gathered an impressive array of tools to help them do this. In addition to designing games requested by local teachers—for example, to teach the water cycle and help students learn fractions—Wybrant’s students have worked on projects including an AR periodic table, a VR presidential museum using assets from the Smithsonian, and a VR escape room with an art history focus. This year they’re working on a VR model of wrecks off Saipan Island in the western Pacific. Alongside the technology component, this project incorporates history, process-pedagogy, and community building. His students are creating videos documenting their work to share with students on the island. There’s a digital equity strand too, Wybrant explains, as this project will enable those who cannot visit the sites to experience them.

One of his students “was born with a mouse and keyboard,” Wybrant says, and equity for him meant access to sophisticated resources so he could continue to grow. While he didn’t need instruction, he benefitted from coaching in project management skills.

“Great solutions grow organically,” Wybrant says, and he attributes the success of his students’ projects to the fact that they were co-created out of authentic needs. There’s no magic-bullet tool or one-size-fits-all approach. While Wybrant acknowledges the irony that setting up a quarter-of-a-million-dollar lab creates inequity with the school down the street that doesn’t have this equipment, he says that with online resources the hardware isn’t always necessary. Above all, “We need teachers who are ready for this, to help all students learn to find what they need to pursue the projects they’re passionate about.”

RECLAIMING THE POWER OF VOICES

A group of high-school seniors in Denver who wanted to reclaim the power of voices launched the nation’s first student-led writing center. With help from a trusted educator, they use social justice events happening in the community to create authentic writing and performing opportunities for themselves, their peers, and their families. Third graders write alongside seventh graders, high schoolers, and even college freshmen—true intergenerational learning. In this learning environment on a Friday evening, an activist, a pastor, an educator, an organizer, and a chess master guide youth through an essential question for a writing workshop. That’s the genius of the writing center. Learning that’s led by students and guided by educators.

Christiana Rodriguez, a student at the Street Knowledge Center at Manual High School, wanted to challenge racial microaggressions she was experiencing in a concurrent enrollment course. Using a CCSS-aligned rubric made in collaboration with the center co-director Olivia Jones, she crafted a powerful blog post to examine and analyze her experience on a national scale, making connections to other forms of racism in America. After publishing her work, she was invited to speak in an Intro to Education course at the University of Colorado at Boulder.

“We used the blog post for PD for teachers from two different districts,” says Rebecca Kaplan, instructor at CU Boulder. “I love seeing teachers grappling with the tough reality the student author was exposing about racism in teachers’ expectations.” The post is now on the syllabus for an Intro to Education course.
—Wisdom Amouzou

Comcast today announced it has now connected more than six million low-income Americans to the Internet through its Internet Essentials program, a broadband adoption program for low-income families in the U.S. The company also announced it will significantly expand eligibility to low-income veterans.

[Ultimate Resource Guide for the NEW Google Classroom!]

Comcast attributes some of the recent growth of Internet Essentials to its mobile application, which now accounts for more than a third of all enrollments. The company has also redesigned its Internet Essentials Learning Center with new content from Common Sense Media and ConnectSafely.org. The site now includes a variety of free videos, tools, and resources that can help individuals learn Internet safety and digital skills.

The E-rate Form 471 filing window is now open and school districts have only a few weeks to submit their applications. Compare & Connect K-12 school broadband comparison tool offers district leaders information to help negotiate for better broadband deals.

EducationSuperHighway has made updates to make finding what neighboring and similar school districts are paying for broadband services easier.

• New service provider view: Providers servicing school districts can now evaluate their impact on the classroom connectivity gap and find new business in districts who aren’t meeting goals.
• Improved user experience: Compare & Connect K-12 now has simplified map views
• New functionality to help districts find the most relevant bandwidth upgrade options: Updated maps help school districts display nearby comparable districts that have more bandwidth for the same price or less.
• Direct access to free resources and support: Districts can now access RFP templates, school network tips, webinars and technical assistance directly on the tool.

CoSN’s 2016 Annual Infrastructure Survey found that, while schools are making progress increasing broadband connectivity in classrooms, significant hurdles remain. These include:

Affordability
✻ 57 percent said ongoing recurring expenses are the biggest barrier to robust connectivity (up from 46% in 2015).

Lack of Competition
✻ 54 percent of rural district leaders reported that only one provider sells Internet to their district.
✻ 40 percent of rural respondents reported receiving one or fewer qualified proposals for broadband services in 2016. This marks no progress from last year.

Digital Equity
✻ 42 percent ranked lack of broadband access outside of school as a “very high priority.”
✻ Nearly two-thirds, however, said they have no strategies for providing off-campus connectivity to students.

Security
✻ Nearly half spend less than 4 percent of their entire technology budget on security.

Cloud Migration
✻ Approximately 40 percent are considering migrating their server infrastructure to the cloud.
✻ Nearly 60 percent said that learning management systems make up the largest cloud deployment, followed by student information systems.