{"id":925,"date":"2020-01-16T06:04:33","date_gmt":"2020-01-16T14:04:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.microsoft.com\/en-us\/education\/blog\/2020\/01\/16\/our-vision-to-close-the-broadband-gap-improve-teacher-training-and-boost-accessibility-in-the-classroom\/"},"modified":"2024-05-31T12:49:17","modified_gmt":"2024-05-31T19:49:17","slug":"our-vision-to-close-the-broadband-gap-improve-teacher-training-and-boost-accessibility-in-the-classroom","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.microsoft.com\/en-us\/education\/blog\/2020\/01\/our-vision-to-close-the-broadband-gap-improve-teacher-training-and-boost-accessibility-in-the-classroom\/","title":{"rendered":"Our vision to close the broadband gap, improve teacher training and boost accessibility in the classroom"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

With the start of the new year, we\u2019re excited to head to London for the annual Bett UK education technology show where we\u2019ll preview a number of new products and updates coming for the 2020-2021 school year. We\u2019ll bring you along to Bett too, from the booth every day of Bett live from London in: \u201cWhat\u2019s new in Edu: Live from Bett\u201d.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Join Leslie Fisher, and see for the very first time, new devices, tools and training resources coming soon to ensure you and your students have your best year yet!<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n

Closing the broadband gap with new devices that connect to cellular service and Community Learning Centers<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

One of the biggest challenges in global education is a lack of access to the internet. Students who lack broadband access at home or school are deprived of the information they need to complete their assignments and keep up with their peers, creating educational inequality and disadvantages that can impact them throughout their lives. In the U.S., the FCC estimates<\/a><\/strong> 70 percent of teachers assign homework that requires broadband access, yet broadband is not available to nearly 25 million people, 19 million of whom live in rural<\/a><\/strong>areas. Even among those who do have a connection, our data shows<\/a><\/strong> that nearly 163 million Americans are not using the internet at broadband speeds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We\u2019ve been investing in solving this multi-faceted problem for years with programs like the Airband Initiative<\/a><\/strong>, which aims to expand broadband access to underserved rural areas around the world. Today, we\u2019re continuing to build on this commitment to connect every student to the internet by introducing two new Connected PCs, built and priced especially for education \u2013 the JP.IK Turn T101 and Positivo Wise N1212S.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These new devices, which will ship this summer, are our most affordable Connected PCs yet, with all the capabilities of Windows and Office and can be used anywhere there is cellular service. These devices will save schools thousands of dollars in server infrastructure and startup time and help the more than 1.15 billion students in rural and emerging markets around the world connect to the internet for the first time or dramatically improve their current connection. The JP.IK Turn T101 starts at just $299 USD and the Wise N1212S will start at $575 USD, both powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 7c with twice the battery life and 25 percent better performance than competing platforms, and like our other Windows PCs boasting the newest Qualcomm Snapdragon chipsets, they will have blazing-fast cellular connectivity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We\u2019re also proud to collaborate with T-Mobile to kick off a pilot next month that offers select districts in rural and underserved areas in the U.S. a chance to test the newest Connected PCs. T-Mobile shares our vision to empower students and provide connectivity and educational equality through their EmpowerED\u2122 2.0 program<\/a><\/strong>\u2013 and will provide the pilot schools with SIM cards and free 4G LTE coverage plans to get their new PCs up and running. For the rest of the world, we\u2019re excited to partner with Vodafone<\/a><\/strong> to provide education-specific cellular connectivity plans to customers using the newest Connected PCs in Vodafone and Vodacom markets in Europe and Africa. Through the Connected Education program, Vodafone endeavors to digitalize school infrastructure and accelerate adoption of fast, secure internet access to schools and students around the world. Together, we\u2019re excited to learn how these new devices and alliances could reshape the education landscape and reduce the broadband gap.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These new devices mark a big milestone in bringing equitable educational opportunities to students around the world, but it\u2019s just the beginning. We\u2019re also thrilled to partner with JP.IK to bring their Community Learning Centers \u2013 solar-powered, pop-up schools \u2013 to more than 130 underserved areas around the world, giving students a truly connected digital learning experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Our most affordable Windows 10 devices get even better<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

No matter your needs or your location in the world, we have the perfect Windows 10 device for you and your students, starting at $219 USD. Today, we\u2019re excited to announce that our portfolio is getting even better. Together with our partners at Acer, Dell, HP, Lenovo, JP.IK and Positivo we\u2019re enhancing 14 of our most affordable Windows 10 devices so you get even more bang for your buck, including:<\/p>\n\n\n\n