According to The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) in March of this year, supplemented by eMarketer, 93% of instructional rooms in public schools have Internet access, a serious rise from just 64% in 1999 and only 3% in 1994. And, the number of schools with broadband connectivity has risen to 95% in 2003.
US Public Schools with Broadband Access | |
2000 | 80% |
2001 | 85 |
2002 | 94 |
2003 | 95 |
Source: National Center for Education Statistics, US February 2005 |
The report also determines that as Net connectivity rises in the public school system, the ratio of students to instructional computers has declined. In 1998, the ratio was 12-to-1, but by 2003 that ratio was 4-to-4.
Teachers Who Believe Selected Technologies Are Essential To Their Teaching | |
Technology | % Feel Essential |
Video camera | 18% |
Full page scanner | 20 |
Multimedia authoring program | 21 |
Presentation software | 35 |
At least one computer for every four students in classroom | 49 |
Encyclopedia and other reference works on CD-ROM51 | 51 |
Telephone in classroom | 56 |
World Wide Web access in classroom | 61 |
Teacher computer station with access to electronic mail | 68 |
Source: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, (TFS) |
As Internet access has become more pervasive in the public school system, so too have controls to keep students away from harmful online content. The study finds that nearly 100% of public schools have technologies or procedures in place on all of their computers with Internet access. In June of 2004 however, St. Bernard Software found that just 39% of technology decision-makers at schools rate their districts with an A+ for protecting their students against inappropriate content. 44% rated a B and 15%, a C.
Read More here at eMarketer.