The Network for Learning seriesThe infrastructure layer of the Network for Learning will provide the ‘highway’ across which all of the services that support the teaching and learning will be delivered. Students and teachers want easy, reliable access to their resources and to be able participate in online communities and forums, using a variety of devices from a variety of locations.The promise of a robust, well designed infrastructure layer is that it will provide greater speed of traffic across the network, greater capacity, and more reliability.
The infrastructure layer of the Network for Learning provides the ‘highway’ across which all of the services that support the teaching and learning will be delivered. Service providers and learners will use this ‘highway’ as they carry out their respective tasks, so the infrastructure must be robust, affordable and sustainable.
The infrastructure layer involves everything from the fibre in the ground, the connection to the school’s server and the distribution around the school campus. Distribution includes wireless, the servers, the routers and switches that manage the traffic over the network, and services that are fundamental to the operation of the network, such as the provision of internet and filtering.
At the Infrastructure layer there is a need for a high level of standardization and integration, to ensure that the network will serve all those connected to it in a reliable and scalable fashion. It is also important that what is constructed in this layer is designed to last, particularly at the basic network layer, as the investment here will be high. So the development of the infrastructure layer is best suited to being developed and managed by a single provider in order to ensure the most cost effective solution, and a seamless user experience across the whole of the network.
The benefit to schools of aggregating demand for internet across the network is a much lower cost, preferably with very high or no data caps. The provision of robust filtering services at this layer also ensures a system-wide level of protection while saving schools the trouble and expense of maintaining their own systems. The promise of a robust, well designed infrastructure layer is that it will provide greater speed of traffic across the network, greater capacity with more users accessing data simultaneously, and more reliability.
This is of critical importance for schools, where the need to use the network to access and share applications and resources grows day by day. Students and teachers want easy, reliable access to their resources and to be able participate in online communities and forums, using a variety of devices from a variety of locations.
The Network for Learning seriesThe infrastructure layer of the Network for Learning will provide the ‘highway’ across which all of the services that support the teaching and learning will be delivered. Students and teachers want easy, reliable access to their resources and to be able participate in online communities and forums, using a variety of devices from a variety of locations.The promise of a robust, well designed infrastructure layer is that it will provide greater speed of traffic across the network, greater capacity, and more reliability.
The infrastructure layer of the Network for Learning provides the ‘highway’ across which all of the services that support the teaching and learning will be delivered. Service providers and learners will use this ‘highway’ as they carry out their respective tasks, so the infrastructure must be robust, affordable and sustainable.
The infrastructure layer involves everything from the fibre in the ground, the connection to the school’s server and the distribution around the school campus. Distribution includes wireless, the servers, the routers and switches that manage the traffic over the network, and services that are fundamental to the operation of the network, such as the provision of internet and filtering.
At the Infrastructure layer there is a need for a high level of standardization and integration, to ensure that the network will serve all those connected to it in a reliable and scalable fashion. It is also important that what is constructed in this layer is designed to last, particularly at the basic network layer, as the investment here will be high. So the development of the infrastructure layer is best suited to being developed and managed by a single provider in order to ensure the most cost effective solution, and a seamless user experience across the whole of the network.
The benefit to schools of aggregating demand for internet across the network is a much lower cost, preferably with very high or no data caps. The provision of robust filtering services at this layer also ensures a system-wide level of protection while saving schools the trouble and expense of maintaining their own systems. The promise of a robust, well designed infrastructure layer is that it will provide greater speed of traffic across the network, greater capacity with more users accessing data simultaneously, and more reliability.
This is of critical importance for schools, where the need to use the network to access and share applications and resources grows day by day. Students and teachers want easy, reliable access to their resources and to be able participate in online communities and forums, using a variety of devices from a variety of locations.
The Network for Learning seriesThe infrastructure layer of the Network for Learning will provide the ‘highway’ across which all of the services that support the teaching and learning will be delivered. Students and teachers want easy, reliable access to their resources and to be able participate in online communities and forums, using a variety of devices from a variety of locations.The promise of a robust, well designed infrastructure layer is that it will provide greater speed of traffic across the network, greater capacity, and more reliability.
The infrastructure layer of the Network for Learning provides the ‘highway’ across which all of the services that support the teaching and learning will be delivered. Service providers and learners will use this ‘highway’ as they carry out their respective tasks, so the infrastructure must be robust, affordable and sustainable.
The infrastructure layer involves everything from the fibre in the ground, the connection to the school’s server and the distribution around the school campus. Distribution includes wireless, the servers, the routers and switches that manage the traffic over the network, and services that are fundamental to the operation of the network, such as the provision of internet and filtering.
At the Infrastructure layer there is a need for a high level of standardization and integration, to ensure that the network will serve all those connected to it in a reliable and scalable fashion. It is also important that what is constructed in this layer is designed to last, particularly at the basic network layer, as the investment here will be high. So the development of the infrastructure layer is best suited to being developed and managed by a single provider in order to ensure the most cost effective solution, and a seamless user experience across the whole of the network.
The benefit to schools of aggregating demand for internet across the network is a much lower cost, preferably with very high or no data caps. The provision of robust filtering services at this layer also ensures a system-wide level of protection while saving schools the trouble and expense of maintaining their own systems. The promise of a robust, well designed infrastructure layer is that it will provide greater speed of traffic across the network, greater capacity with more users accessing data simultaneously, and more reliability.
This is of critical importance for schools, where the need to use the network to access and share applications and resources grows day by day. Students and teachers want easy, reliable access to their resources and to be able participate in online communities and forums, using a variety of devices from a variety of locations.
The service layer of the Network for Learning is what provides the greatest value to schools and end users, involving the local equipment and last mile connectivity that allows end users to access local and remote applications. This is the 3rd video in this series.
Marg McLeod, CORE Education Project Director, talks about the growing number of fibre optic loops being established across New Zealand. Marg describes the opportunities these bring for collaboration, and what she calls the potential for the 'democratization of knowledge'.
Services provided across the Network for Learning will enable us to re-think our ideas about how programmes of learning are developed and delivered, how assessment occurs, how we facilitate collaborative activity, and how we personalise the learning experience. This is the 4th video in this series.
