FCC E-Rate Changes Will Boost Economic Opportunity, Genachowski Says
MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. - Changes to the E-rate program expected to be adopted at Thursday’s FCC meeting (CD Sept 21 p9) will boost economic opportunity in the U.S. and help schools access faster broadband speeds at potentially lower prices, Chairman Julius Genachowski said. “Faster networks that are more affordable -- that’s what these changes will mean for schools, libraries and communities,” he told a Common Sense Media education technology showcase at the Computer History Museum Tuesday. The order is the “most significant step yet toward implementing the [National] Broadband Plan’s recommendations … to improve education,” he said.
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The E-rate program has met its dial-up-era goals, but needs to be updated for the broadband world, Genachowski said. The pilot wireless, off-campus program in the order will help bring broadband to students who might not be able to afford it and let teachers exploit broadband learning technology, he said. “Education doesn’t stop at the schoolyard gate or library door,” and broadband connectivity shouldn’t either, he said. When visiting schools around the country Genachowski frequently hears teachers complain that they want to assign homework based on online resources but can’t because half the class doesn’t have access, he said. “One of the opportunities of mobile is the opportunity to close that gap."
The order should help schools save money on broadband by allowing them to choose from more providers, Genachowski said. “For whatever reason, the program the way it has been implemented, limited the market choices that schools had to get Internet access.” The order will let schools use E-Rate funds more flexibly, whether it’s connecting through existing networks or “lighting dark fiber that’s already in the ground,” he said.
The federal government isn’t interested in nationalizing broadband service, Genachowski said in response to a question from the audience of educators and education policy workers. “Private investment is what has driven and will drive our communications infrastructure.” But “in a focused way, as we have always done in this country, we are looking at areas where the market on its own won’t deliver what we need for our kids and for rural America,” he said. Part of that means making the Universal Service Fund more efficient and making it apply to broadband, he said.
Connecting schools’ libraries and students to faster broadband service will help educators move from print to digital-centric teaching materials, said Karen Cantor, director of the office of education technology at the U.S. Department of Education. She said that can also save schools money because digital textbooks will mean classrooms aren’t locked into one set of curriculum for years and can individually tailor class experiences for each student.