Wireless devices which are inclusive of the likes of tablets and smartphones are more than capable of revolutionizing education for good. This technology can help teachers perform their jobs more effectively and can also help students learn their lessons from anywhere in the school.
Wireless accessibility has lately become a part of the necessity in a 21st-century school learning environment. Here’s why.
1. Improved learning flexibility and mobility
Wired computers come with a restriction on internet accessibility.
Now, this is pretty obvious; isn’t it? Wired computers are restricted ONLY to a specific location, and hence, that’s the only place from where students will be able to gain access to the internet.
Wireless accessibility, on the other hand, makes it possible for students to gain an access to the internet from anywhere in the school premises. This helps to promote learning mobility and flexibility for good.
2. Instant communication
Wi-Fi accessibility helps in instantaneous communication between teachers and students, students and students, and students and parents from the very premises of the school itself.
This helps a lot in improving the efficiency of communication more than anything else, in particular.
3. More engaging and more interactive classes
Wireless network accessibility allows teachers to inculcate several pieces of technology into lessons.
This may include things like:
- Projectors
- Interactive white boards
- Audio equipments
- Touch screen devices
- Mobile devices
The inculcation of these technologies in classes helps to increases engagements in classes for good.
4. Wi-Fi accessibility in classes helps to support the BYOD programs (if any)
BYOD is the acronym of “Bring Your Own Device.”It is the practice of allowing students to bring their own devices into school for academic-related purposes. These devices are inclusive of the likes of:
- Smartphones
- Tablets
- Laptops and other similar devices.
The benefits of BYOD solutions are many. Some of these are:
- It makes students ready for the outside world.
- It helps to improve collaboration among students.
- It helps to put learning beyond the walls of the classroom.
- It supports personalized learning more than anything else, in particular.
- It helps to make education more interactive and also helps to increase engagements in classrooms.
Wireless network accessibility helps to support the BYOD movement in schools and colleges. So in a sense, it does help to promote engagements in classrooms for good.
5. Wi-Fi accessibility allows students to access study resources from any location
Today students have the convenience to access study materials from anywhere in the world provided they have a working device and a steady internet connection.
Certain online platforms provide access to presentations, documents and spreadsheets wherever there’s an internet connection. Thus, ease of accessibility increases tremendously which, in a sense, helps to promote student engagements in classrooms for good.
6. Quicker file sharing
Easy network file sharing between computers on a steady WiFi network helps to provide students/teachers with more flexibility in comparison to the use of compact discs or pen-drives.
You can use the immense power of the wireless network to save copies of important data (which is inclusive of the likes of educational documents, images, videos, and audio) on a different computer within the blink of an eye.
So convenience you wanted; convenience you’ll get. Results you wanted; results you’ll get. You really can’t ask for more; can you?
A few more mentions…
- Wireless accessibility helps to improve self-initiated learning among students.
- Wireless accessibility helps to improve student motivation in the best possible manner.
- Wireless accessibility plays a huge role in improving a student’s learning outcomes for good.
- Wireless accessibility in schools helps to improve parental engagements in learning and can also help to strengthen the link between home and school in the best possible manner.
Red flags to observe…
- Students can use the power of school WiFi for personal consumption (like getting on social media, accessing e-mail accounts, etc.) that are not related to education in any way whatsoever.
- Illegal downloads (such as torrents).
- Security problems.
- Stolen devices.
How to improve WiFi connectivity in school
- Improve bandwidth
Insufficient bandwidth can easily result in a sluggish connection. Assess your students’ requirements and improve your bandwidth.
A professional WiFi service provider can easily suggest you the best connection in terms of your school strength.
- Use WiFi boosters
This is perhaps the easiest way to icnrese your network speed. Just purchase a few WiFi boosters and get rid of all those dead zones.
- Use MIMO access points
Multiple in, multiple out (MIMO) technology represents the next level of boosting a WiFi signal, ensuring the best possible connectivity.
Consider having MIMO access points in your school. Talk to your service provider for more details.
To sum up, I can easily say that wireless accessibility in schools can play a major role in improving academic engagement for good, provided proper monitoring is done from the point of view of the management.
Monitoring through wireless video cameras, child lock systems, etc. can help to keep security issues at bay. If there’s any problem with wireless dead zones, cell phone signal boosters or an additional wireless antenna can be used to sort out the problems.
With that, I’ll bring this article to a close for now. Hope you had a great read.