The Digital middletown schools project: A glance to the future

1. SUMMARY OF PAPER:

This article reports on the deployment of a high-bandwidth wireless network for content distribution to two schools. The project, titled Digital Middletown, builds upon the sociological distance high bandwidth wireless technology will make content such as high definition media files, synchronous educational process delivered over long distance high-bandwidth wireless technologies. The project investigates how the availability of a high bandwidth (30 Mbps) wireless network impacts the delivery deployment of a high-bandwidth wireless network allows for schools staff in two elementary schools.

Project Description

The Digital Middletown Project builds upon the sociological Middletown. This report addresses the school network delivery installation of a wireless, high bandwidth network to two elementary schools. Children with broadband at home report that such high speeds for children ages 6-17 with a home broadband connection, 66% broadband for their children’s improved academics due to its high-quality online educational content that is widely available and meets the highest standards of educational

Goals of Digital Middletown

The goals of Digital Middletown centered on two domains of application: education and community. This report addresses the school network delivery typology. These goals included:

Installation of a wireless, high bandwidth network to two elementary schools.
Testing the value, impact, and educational potential of content using the network.
Facilitating collaboration between K-12 teachers and Ball State University faculty in the development of new digital teaching resources and the customizing of available resources.
Defining new educational content models and practices based on the application of digital animation or interactivity.

Broadband Access:

It include data management, online and technology-based assessments, e-learning, and accessing high-quality digital content, maintain computer networks, maximize educational uptime, and plan preparation

Network Infrastructure

The Digital Middletown Project (DMP) connects two area public elementary schools and a surrounding neighborhood to Ball State University’s data at 24 Mbps full duplex.

Participating schools

a) Mitchell Elementary School

The school received a 60Mbps (30 Mbps symmetrical) half-duplex wireless backbone connection to Ball State University’s data network. Within Mitchell Elementary School, data supplement the wired connections; four “access points” were installed throughout the school. The access points provided all wireless connected devices the ability university. This school was connected with a 24 Mbps (12 Mbps symmetrical) half-duplex wireless backbone connection to the data network (a network switch provided 10/100 Mbps data connections).

b) Cowan Elementary School.

The wireless point-to-point connection from the fire department to Cowan Elementary School is a 20 Mbps half-duplex link. Within Cowan Elementary School, data equipment was installed, providing 10/100 Mbps wired data connections and three access points were installed. The access points provided all wireless connected devices.

Provided Content

A regular and high-definition movies, games, and regular and high-definition United Streaming digital library of over 40,000 standards-based video. Teachers and students download or stream the United Streaming also includes curriculum lesson plans and student activity guides. The transmission of high quality IP as video, wireless access point feature sets. Reliable transmission of a high bandwidth, saturating video stream can be available for point-to-point wireless trunks, it is not generally available.

2. CRITIQUE:

Abstract Depiction

The summary provided at the end of the article depicts all the contents of the article and it also describes the future needs of the latest technology for cheaper and more efficient way. The article reports on the deployment of a high-bandwidth wireless network for content distribution to two schools and there is no part of research oriented activity.

Literature Review

The literature review mentioned in the article is not sufficient to describe the rational of the installation of broadband facility. The article describes that “According to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB, 2003), home broadband use has increased in the past two years (2001-2003), from 10% to 37% with the average household income of a broadband family being $72,000. Children with broadband at home report that such high speeds affect both their online and offline activities, including schoolwork.” There is shown this project as a need to better understand the practical and realizable potential for the increased bandwidth that may soon become available to our schools to enhance the educational process and to develop the appropriate tools and infrastructure to support this. Seventy-two percent (72%) of small schools— those with fewer than 300 students—had high-speed access, compared to 85 % of all schools. Most of these small schools are in rural areas (National Center for Educational Statistics, 2001). In February 2004, the Pew Internet and American Life Project released a report that outlined how broadband adoption is growing in urban, suburban, and rural areas, though larger percentages for urban and suburban than rural users. Between 2000 and 2003, the study found that while the number of home broadband users grew from 8% to 36% of the online population in urban communities, and from 7% to 32% in suburban communities, the number of home broadband users in rural communities only grew from 3% to 19%.

Technical Terminologies

The terms used in the article are not well defined as it should be so that a layman also understands, if this scenario is analysis in context to decision making its terminologies needs more elaboration to describe all the benefits of the project. For example the vey important term broadband must be define and should present a comparison with its alternate technology.

Strengths and Limitations

The strength of the studies can not be assess unless there is comparative data provision however the limitations of the article contents are that this describes the feasibility of a pilot project for small project area and there is suggestion to adopt the same technology for other educational system if this pilot project succeeded.

There is mentioned that the United States Congress’ Web-Based Education Commission’s seven areas for action related to improving learning in web environments (2001) include:

Broadband access. Powerful new Internet resources, especially broadband access, that are widely and equitably available and affordable for all learners.
Professional development. Continuous, relevant training and support for educators and administrators at all levels.
Research and development. New research on how people learn in the
Internet age
Quality of content. High-quality online educational content that is widely available and meets the highest standards of educational excellence.
Regulations and e-learning. Relief from outdated regulations that impede instructional innovation in favor of approaches that embrace anytime, anywhere, any pace learning.
Privacy and protection. Safeguards to protect online learners and ensure their privacy, especially young children.
Funding. Sustained funding—through traditional and new sources—that is adequate to the challenges at hand.

The above mentioned seven priority areas are not fully or partially achieved in the proposed roadmap of the technology. The project must be introduced in component wise according to the need basis and priority areas. There is lack in describing the project in context to needs and its fulfillment factor.

Bridging the Gaps

There are some gaps to create a link between the technology and its users. The literature review consulted in this regards is used as a link between the users and the technology need. On the contrary this link may be bridge by the future demands of the users and its needs for the inclusion in the academic opportunity. The second gape is the financial and time based feasibility which would be the primary step for the initiation of the installation of the broadband technology.

Project Scope

The project scope as a pilot project is not sufficient, this must be done under different available facilities in different towns and different intellectual approaches of the users. As the technology output is fully dependent on the strengths of the users therefore this important factor must be included for to define the scope area of the project.

Data Sets

The datasets used in this article are based on the literature review results and there are different parameters of the proposed project, the reason for this is that it is based on the development action rather than a research based activity.

Analysis Technique

The analysis technique is not deployed very well the main reason for this is the gaps between the users and the technology success.

3. CONCLUSION:

As a conclusion it is can be strongly said that such kind of projects always plays a good development approach but its future success can be ensure by the lessons learned through the past projects of the same nature. The feasibility, comparative analysis of the available parallel technologies, defining project scope, setting of the success parameters and social adoptability of the technology are the main wings of the proposed study. These wings are not defined well and there is no systematical approach to define the problem and proposing the solution.

The most relevant literature review and most recent technology are two parallel subjects which set the success of the plan and prove to be helpful to adopt most economical and satisfaction of the end user. These are the guidelines which are missed and because of this no solid decision can be taken as a national decision. This limitation of this article makes it as non professional approach to the objectives of the main studies.