Making High-Speed Internet Access a Reality for All Schools

Innosight Institute has published another case study, this one titled "The North Carolina School Connectivity Initiative: A public-private approach to improving school data networks."

On the heels of the Digital Learning Council's release of its "10 Elements of High Quality Digital Learning," which provides a roadmap to transforming the American education system into a student-centric one powered by digital learning, this case study is a crucial one.

For the Digital Learning Council's vision of the future of education to become reality, high-speed Internet must become a ubiquitous backbone of the system. Innosight Institute's case study, sponsored by the Joyce Foundation, sheds light on how that could happen by profiling one state that extended high-speed Internet access to all of its schools even in the remotest and poorest of areas.

As policy makers consider the best ways to extend high-speed Internet access to all schools, this case study paints a picture of the path North Carolina took to do just that. With a public-private partnership of many players, North Carolina dramatically changed the face of its connectivity within a few short years.

One question going forward that I think emerges from the case study is the sustainability of this initiative, as well as what creative pathways this will open up as technology continues to improve.

After reading it, we'd love your thoughts, too.