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E d Te ch S h o w D a i l y 2 1 M o n d a y, J u n e 2 7 , 2 0 1 6 ARE STUDENTS IN YOUR DISTRICT AT A LOSS FOR CONNECTIVITY? THE BUS STOPS HERE! By Lisa Majdi, Cox Business – Education, Director Segment Marketing As school systems try to keep pace with an increasingly digital world, the role of the Internet as an educational tool is a big part of the equation. The knowledge that exists online enables more efficient and thorough learning experiences. Consider, for instance, Babson Survey Research Group's 2014 survey in which 70.8 per- cent of academic leaders reported online learning as critical to their long-term strategy. Moreover, because of the ways in which the Internet is changing job requirements, students must have ample experience with the technology to develop the skills necessary to compete in future work environments. But while there are policies in place to ensure con- nectivity within schools, such as President Obama's Connect Ed initiative to provide 99 percent of schools with high-speed connectivity, disparate access for students after school hours presents another challenge for school districts altogether. The problem that arises is that as schools continue to integrate Internet connectivity into the education process, students who do not have access outside of the classroom are poorly equipped to compete academically with their peers that do. Thus, if districts are going to incorporate technology into their lesson plans, administrators must bear the responsibility to ensure that connectivity is available to students as they continue their course work after school hours. Failure to do so will result in unequal development of computer skills, put stu- dents in underserved areas at an academ- ic disadvantage, and haunts the students as they move into higher education and the job market. Addressing this issue, however, does not have to be expensive or complex. Schools struggling to rectify the uneven access to connectivity within their districts should consider two California school dis- tricts that put wireless routers on school buses to address the problem. These two districts were able to grant an equal foot- ing to the segments of their community that otherwise were at a loss for adequate connectivity. They looked at the unique challenges in front of them and utilized available technology to the fullest. These districts parked their buses overnight in areas with high concentra- tions of students with limited Internet con- nectivity, bringing connectivity to com- munities ranging from trailer parks to trib- al reservations. The routers are powered by solar panels, and students have a spe- cific protocol installed on their devices for secure log-in. The Internet is part of the education process now; there's no going back. School systems must take the responsi- bility to ensure that all their students have access to the same technological resources. Sometimes it's simply a matter of a little ingenuity to make great net- working solutions available to all chil- dren. These districts in California started small, with just three Wi-Fi-enabled buses. The program was such a success, however, that plans to expand the project to 100 buses are in the works. So as your school district con- tinues to integrate technology into the classroom, be sure not to leave students behind. With a little ingenuity, networking tools can provide every student an oppor- tunity to reach their potential. In order to offer learning experi- ences that go beyond school hours and classroom walls, Cox Business has solu- tions that help schools accommodate this ever-changing environment. And we believe bandwidth and system support shouldn't get in the way. That's why we offer solutions like Managed Wi-Fi, which include a professionally designed and installed network that works inside and outside your building. Plus, MPLS IP-VPN can help you scale your band- width to accommodate a variety of needs, including videos, photos, graphics and other educational programs. For more information about Cox Business education solutions, visit booth #1341 or go to www.coxbusiness.com/education. ARTIFACTS CHANGE THE WAY YOU DISCOVER BOOKS "Teachers are expected to know sub- ject, pedagogy, assessment and the dif- ferentiated needs of their students," says Katie Palencsar, former NYC Public School Teacher. "But how can we expect every teacher to know what is inside every tradebook? Who is going to help teachers match students to books with the prescriptive reading levels and specific interests that are necessary for success?" These are the questions that Palencsar has been asking for years, first as a teacher, later as the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Unbound Concepts, a software company that cre- ates search criteria for books. "If you don't get books of interest into a stu- dent's hands," she asserts, "you risk los- ing them as a reader forever." Palencsar remembers how she depended on the kindness of colleagues to help her find books that had examples of ideas that she was teaching. She also remembers reading hundreds of books in her classroom library and creating elabo- rate charts of topics, so that she could remember and recommend them to her students. Now she leads a company that offers free software to classroom teachers to solve the same problems without requir- ing help from colleagues. Unbound Concepts created an app called Artifact that greatly expands the information that can be articulated about a book. "Once you think of a book as an archeological site filled with ideas and characteristics that can be surfaced, then you understand Artifact," she says. "We look for key K12 topics and elements in stories. Once we've elongated them, it is easy to search for a book, or to browse through lists of books with shared characteristics." Palencsar preaches a simple idea: "Nothing improves a classroom lesson more than great examples from books." If she wants to teach a lesson about pre- diction, then she wants three or four books with examples of prediction. If she wants to teach a lesson on story- telling devices, then she wants two or three stories where the device is applied. The software is free to class- rooms. Instead of charging schools, Unbound Concepts offers paid serv- ices to publishers to create artifacts for their books. The solution pro- vides opportunities for authors, publish- ers and distributors who have purposeful- ly created and curated K12-appropriate to surface their considerations and efforts in context-rich artifacts. Both Baker & Taylor's TS360 and KnowledgePoint are in the process of enhancing their power- ful search tools with the inclusion of arti- facts. For more information, visit www .unboundconcepts.com or www.discover artifacts.com or stop by booth #311.