Education
CLASS IS ONLINE – AS LONG AS TECH ISN’T OFFLINE
As classroom technology evolves, reliable connectivity has become critical. But bringing networks up to today’s standards requires balancing demands with cost constraints and needs for simplicity. Ben Bayly, Education & Public Sector BDM at TP-Link UK&I, discusses the challenges and how educational institutions can adapt their networks in the digital age of education.
T
Ben Bayly, Education & Public Sector BDM at TP-Link UK&I
he face of education is evolving, and digital devices are forming the very basis through which teaching is delivered and learning
takes place. However, many schools and universities are not set up to deal with such demand – they are constrained by legacy infrastructure that isn’t built to the needs of the modern classroom.
Research suggests that only 63% of schools have full Wi Fi coverage. In your experience, what is the current state of network readiness in UK education? Classroom connectivity has become one of the most critical enablers of modern education, powering new digital devices that are coming to form the foundation of learning today. Oſten, a single lesson can involve thirty laptops or tablets, an interactive display, background services and more at once. We’re finding many schools have outdated infrastructure that is not capable of dealing with such high-density and sustained use.
36 | March/April 2026 Te very design of many school and university
WLANs also poses a challenge, as access points were traditionally mounted in corridors, which have to serve multiple classrooms while going through various walls and spanning large distances. Tis can leave schools and universities with dead zones, lag and fluctuating signals that stop essential learning from taking place.
As AI, AR/VR, and cloud-first teaching tools become more common, what new pressures does this place on educational institutions’ networks? Educational institutions using advanced technology such as AI, AR/VR and cloud solutions cannot rely on legacy network designs. Tese devices and solutions place heavy loads on Wi-Fi, which will struggle to meet the demand. It is recommended that education networks be built for capacity first and foremost, and education leaders should reconsider their network design. Each classroom benefits from its own access
www.pcr-online.biz
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52
