Bandwidth for All

THE Journal: The Internet has reached virtually every American school, but problems of bandwidth and connectivity persist. Despite more than 17 years of government subsidy via E-rate, a recent Consortium for School Networking (CoSN) survey revealed that a whopping 99 percent of districts still "needed more bandwidth." Rich Kaestner, project director for Washington, DC-based CoSN, attributed the bandwidth shortfall to a relentless need to feed the digital beast. Digital curricula, 1-to-1 programs, bring your own technology (BYOT) initiatives and Common Core textbooks are driving a growing crowd of students and teachers online, both at school and at home. But what can schools do about those homes that don't have Internet connectivity?

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