Globally governments are empowering schools with the means to provide children with the right technology in preparation for working life in the 21st century.
At the same time universities, technikons and other tertiary institutions are expected to provide state-of-the-art IT facilities to maximise the learning experience.
This trend is also mirrored in SA, with a lot of schools already computer-enabled, and tertiary institutions implementing and gearing their systems towards the latest innovations.
GautengOnline is one the SA`s main initiatives aimed at providing children with the technology needed to be successful in competitive IT-driven marketplace. Other organisations such as non-profit organisation Bridges.org are also assisting the Presidential IT Taskforce in its efforts to `computerise` the country`s learners.
The role of technology
Many believe that if children have not grasped the fundamentals by the time they leave school, they more than likely never will. This is why it is so critical that schools have the latest learning tools and information.
With most schools teaching the basics of technology, universities can assume that the majority of incoming students are familiar with IT.
Although technology has revolutionised the way both schools and tertiary institutions operate - there is one big difference. Tertiary institutions are hotbeds of innovation and are often at the forefront of technological change and revolution.
Today, students love to visualise what they are learning. Powerful new applications, with their ability to bring multimedia content to the classroom, have significantly changed the traditional classroom and lecture halls.
Significantly, the Internet is used by students and teachers alike as a huge virtual library, an invaluable source of information on just about any subject.
But - as with most things in life - heavy use of the Internet does have its downfalls. It can place huge strain on the network, which can lead to frustration as essential tasks and research is delayed due to bandwidth-hungry applications or large files.
Fortunately there are solutions on the market that ease these congestions. Intelligent switching devices can prioritise traffic, giving right of way to business traffic such as networked telephony or essential administrative work.
Countering the Internet threat
Still staying with the Internet, although it provides education with an enormous amount of information, it also represents a real threat to students, schools and tertiary institutions. Administrators face a constant uphill battle - preventing students from accessing inappropriate content on the Web, while also safeguarding confidential information.
More importantly, children must be protected against the growing number of dangerous criminals that prey on them via the Internet.
Again there`s a solution. Today`s firewalls are developed to lock down the gateway to the Internet, preventing students from accessing pre-determined Web sites while stopping potential trespassers, vandals and thieves from accessing the network.
A registry of inappropriate sites must also be maintained at all times. This can be maintained on-site by the network administrator or by a database filtering update service.
In conclusion
Looking at return on investment [ROI] from IT - schools and tertiary institutions musk ask themselves three questions:
* Is the solution affordable and easy to install and manage?
* Will it grow with you? As more students enrol, and more teachers and administrators join, will the system cope?
* Is it ready for today`s and tomorrow`s applications?
The key is, therefore, to partner with a solution provider that fulfils these requirements, and will also assist IT administrators with the management of networks and other issues faced by educational institutions.
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