Wireless woes: how poor wireless coverage is having an impact in our classrooms

‘Steve works for proactive IT service, support and solutions provider, Icomm Technologies, which is currently offering a free wireless site survey [http://www.icomm.co.uk/sectors/it-education-sector/it-overview.aspx]. He has over 15 years’ experience in the education sector, delivering metropolitan scale projects providing wireless to entire communities. He also has lineage in delivering large scale network infrastructure projects on behalf of a number of LEAs, which has given him deep understanding of the often complex environments education operates within. Steve has specialist experience in primary, secondary and independent education and has worked with all the best education vendors.’

Follow @icommtechno

Email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

BYOD schemes and 1:1 learning are getting steadily more popular, and one concern that comes with these ideas is wireless stability. Should a certain number of pupils in a class have trouble getting their tablet connected to the internet, how much would this change the lesson? Industry expert Steve Buet discusses the absolute importance of a great wireless network.

A reliable wireless network is becoming a must have for schools in the UK, but many are still woefully inadequate. As more teachers begin to embrace wireless devices such as laptops and tablets for use in the classroom, an increasing number of schools are finding that their poor wireless coverage is hindering the use of technology in lessons and that new equipment is going unused.

In the last few years the average number of wireless devices has increased from one or two, to three or five per user, and these figures are being reflected in the classroom. It has been predicted by the British Education Suppliers Association (BESA) that almost a quarter (22%) of ‘pupil facing computers’ will be tablets by the end of 2015. However, as the number of wireless devices increases, so too does the demand for the infrastructure to support it, which many schools are worryingly still without.

The problem

Wireless network utilisation has exploded with the increase in multiple devices per user, BYOD and guest provisioning. But educators are coming across obstacles that are hampering the learning environment. One issue is that there are often many devices trying to connect at the same time. A typical scenario is that 30 or more laptops or tablets may be switched on at the start of a lesson but after 15 minutes there are still some devices unable to connect. This is having a direct effect on learning as teachers aren’t able to deliver lessons as planned.

To overcome this issue many wireless providers are erroneously recommending the deployment of additional wireless access points with the intention of offering maximum coverage and quality of connection.

However, deploying too many access points is as bad as having too few, as user devices battle to connect amidst an overly congested and conflicting air space. Common issues include users regularly getting disconnected as they move around campus and high signal interference, which hinders connectivity and speed of downloads. This dictates poor user experience, which is also bad for technology learning.

A further hurdle to wireless connectivity is the fabric of the building itself. Some materials used to construct school buildings are simply too dense for wireless signals to pass through. There are ways around this problem but we’ve seen that quick fixes are being embraced too readily, which won’t resolve issues long-term.

Many school buildings also have poor provision of data and power cabling, which often results in new cables needing to be installed in order to connect further wireless access points. This can, however, be problematic where listed buildings are concerned, and too often this fails to remedy the problem effectively leading to further problems down the line.

What schools can do to overcome these issues

Every school is built differently and will have different wireless demands. Educators should ensure that decisions taken to purchase any wireless products are made with consideration of their particular site and its user demands, instead of basing a decision on what has been successful elsewhere.

Equally, it is essential that educators consider their current and future requirements from a user-based perspective and that wireless surveys are conducted in parallel with a long term IT strategy. Some technologies align themselves well to future wireless expansion, whereas others quite simply do not. Lots of access points do not guarantee effective delivery of wireless services and old Victorian buildings are another issue.

Victorian builds have particularly thick walls made of materials which hinder the propagation of wireless, but a specialist can install cutting edge antenna technology which can help to maximise coverage. A seemingly simple solution, but this means this type of building can be fully supported without the need for multiple, and costly, access points.

Of course, in order to know which solution will work best, schools need to have a firm grasp of the latest technology and what they are want from a wireless network. Key considerations include; the applications it will need to support, the type of devices being used or are planning to use, the size of the area needing coverage, as well as the total number and density of user devices. All of these factors should be taken into consideration but can be difficult to figure out without professional advice, so I would recommend schools ask for a free site survey from a supplier.
Although there are a variety of difficulties that schools may face with their wireless technology, it is important to stress that in almost all cases, they can be overcome. All decent suppliers will be happy to answer any questions and talk schools through the options available to them.