Lose the Wires? by: Laurence Goldberg

In this article Mr. Goldberg asks the question what about wireless schools? A new school is being built in your area and they say that there will be no wires involved for the technology that is going to be used in that school. This is due to the Access Points (APs) which are devices that send out the wireless signal. Some extra wiring is involved with this process but they will be put to good use. Also, Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP) is a protocol used for wireless applications to enhance security. This is very important in a school setting. Now the school is ready to be build but what standards are involved with putting together a high-tech school? There are several different standards that are available through the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). This company has all of the standards that anyone and everyone can look up and use for all sots of different types of projects. One example is Bluetooth, we have heard this term in the last 6 months or so because of cell phone use in cars. Bluetooth is a low-power, low-cost, royalty-free standard that has been said to be a good way to interconnect with small devices. This interconnection is what schools are looking for in a technology driven district. Mr. Goldberg suggests that lab and media centers be the focus for students when learning this technology. He also states that the classroom is the strongest case for technology interaction with students. Making wireless technology avoidable for school districts is where the money is in today's society. Now that the prices have gone down schools are have LCD projectors to show videos or other media to their classroom. Mr. Goldberg looks forward to a wireless future for all schools, and this may not be in the distant future like some may believe.

I think that this is a great way to show that technology is not only affordable now but practical. School district may be old and stuck in the "stone age" but they are slowly becoming aware of what is going on in the world. I have recently been in a classroom where they have mobile devices that come and students can play with. They are the i-pod touch, and each student has an assigned number to one of them. The i-pod touch set comes on a cart with foam around each device and a charger so that when the student is finished they just plug it back in. The cool thing is that students can read books, play spelling word games, etc on these devices. I thought WOW!! this school is not old and crashing in the technology department at all! I believe if more schools were like this one then students and teachers would be excited to learn.