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Texas big plan for closing the digital divide: at-home broadband internet for every student
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Luis Rodriguez, Xfinity comp tech supervisor, is shown with a home modem Thursday, March 4, 2021 in Houston. Texas Education Agency officials are targeting a new, unprecedented goal in the coming years to ensure all public-school students have at-home broadband internet.Melissa Phillip, Houston Chronicle / Staff photographerShow MoreShow Less
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Luis Rodriguez, Xfinity comp tech supervisor, is shown at a cable box outside a home Thursday, March 4, 2021 in Houston. Texas Education Agency officials are targeting a new, unprecedented goal in the coming years to ensure all public-school students have at-home broadband internet.Melissa Phillip, Houston Chronicle / Staff photographerShow MoreShow Less
Can Ed Tech Make Learning More Accessible?
Ed tech experts say simple digital tools can help make learning more accessible if utilized correctly. Arizona educators set out to do just that for students with autism. Arizona Autism Charter Schools students have been using Lego robotics kits provided through Intel.
Long before K-12 schools moved to online remote learning last year in response to the coronavirus pandemic, education policy advocates were clamoring for ways to improve education for neurodiverse students. Concerns ranged from lack of appropriate state and federal school funding to curriculum design and everything in between.
Much of the recent discourse about ed tech has revolved around accessibility, mainly in terms of device availability and Internet connectivity. But this still leaves another obstacle making the learning itself more accessible.
By Dian Schaffhauser
02/17/21
A
group of K-12 organizations has banded together to urge the Federal
Communications Commission (FCC) to incorporate
cybersecurity purchases into the E-rate
program. The goal of the 35-page
petition is to help school districts protect their
networks and data by expanding E-rate in three ways:
By defining all firewall and related features as basic beginning in funding year 2021;
Increasing E-rate s five-year Category 2 budget cap in future funding years to support additional cybersecurity investments; and
Updating the agency s definition of broadband to include cybersecurity. With
cyberattacks threatening the broadband networks and data of schools,
including the school systems serving some of the country s most
Ed tech policy advocates are asking the FCC for help funding cybersecurity in public schools, as virtual learning continues and K-12 education is the most-targeted public sector for ransomware attacks.