How High-Speed Fiber Broadband Benefits Public Education
How High-Speed Fiber Broadband Benefits Public Education
The COVID-19 pandemic put a spotlight on two major issues with our current public education system. One, there is a significant digital divide that is causing many students to fall behind because they do not have proper internet access. And two, many schools and communities do not have enough resources to address that problem effectively.
Despite these issues, online learning continues to be incorporated into lesson plans, even when schools have returned to in-person classes. This means that unless the lack of internet access for many students is addressed, the digital divide will continue to grow.
Fortunately, next-generation internet services provided by local governments, utilities, electric co-ops or tribal governments provide a beneficial solution. In many cases, it is a cost-effective, reliable, and cash-collecting alternative to the traditional for-profit internet service providers. When high-speed internet service is provided by a familiar, local entity, it adds a sense of community and “shop local” for a necessity that has, for the most part, been supplied by major corporations.
How the Digital Divide Impacts Education
According to a 2021 report by Boston Consulting Group, Common Sense Media and Southern Education Foundation, up to 12 million K–12 public school students across the country are caught in the digital divide, lacking adequate internet connectivity or the proper devices to participate in online education.
To understand what that lack means, consider a Michigan State University study, which found that middle and high school students with faster and more reliable home internet had a grade point average (GPA) of 3.18, while those with no internet access had a GPA of 2.81. Although that’s only a difference of about 0.4, it is more significant than it sounds.
A University of Miami study found that a one-point increase in high school GPA raises annual adulthood earnings by around 12 percent for men and 14 percent for women. By those numbers, a GPA that’s 0.4 points lower could lead to a loss in annual adulthood earnings of about 5 percent. Looking at additional costs incurred from lower tax contributions and higher government expenditures, the Boston Consulting Group study put that 5 percent loss at about a $22-$33 billion annual Gross Domestic Product (GDP) loss.
Benefits of Broadband for Education
Incorporating broadband infrastructure as a service provided by local government or your public utility means everyone has the opportunity to access fast and reliable internet at an affordable rate. This not only means that more students will be able to participate in online classes in general, but more students will be able to:
- Access after-school online education modules;
- Handle homework assignments that require internet access;
- Access necessary research for larger projects;
- Explore topics of interest on their own time;
- Learn the computer skills necessary to secure a job in the future.
For those that may still lack the necessary devices to connect to a fiber broadband network, they can take advantage of its benefits in other ways, such as faster access on computers at public libraries.
Getting Started
Having access to network professionals that offer turnkey services will help expedite the planning and implementation of a fiber backbone for the city.
Once a municipality, utility or co-op has decided to build out its broadband infrastructure, it is time to get the funding in place for the project. The federal government has dedicated funding for broadband through several pieces of legislation, including the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act of 2020, the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) of 2021 and the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act of 2021. This funding is prioritized to help unserved and underserved areas and areas lacking affordable or reliable broadband, and it supports connecting anchor institutions like schools, libraries, and higher education organizations, among other community-support agencies, with the intention of addressing the educational digital divide.
Magellan can help you take advantage of the federal funding that’s out there with turnkey services, including grant application development, planning, engineering, implementation and management of the fastest and most technologically advanced fiber-optic broadband networks available today.
“The deployment of fiber throughout the City will open doors and offer benefits that we
have only begun to fathom. It is critical that we approach this project with a strategic
mindset, and that’s why we’re so pleased to have Magellan on our team. They, along with our regional partners in Hampton Roads, will help us all take a giant leap into the future.”
– Rick West, Mayor of Chesapeake, VA
Magellan has secured more than $1 billion in new broadband investments, connecting over 1,000 schools, universities, libraries, hospitals, government facilities, and over 1 million homes across hundreds of communities.
Interested in closing the educational digital divide in your community? Click here to get in touch with a project executive at Magellan today to start exploring the vision for your community’s broadband initiative.