Released on October 25, 2013
Today, Premier Brad Wall announced SaskTel will be investing more than $5 million in capital investments over two years to upgrade CommunityNet. This will ensure faster, and more equitable, internet access for teachers, students and administrators across the province. Wall made the announcement at the Saskatchewan Teachers’ Federation Councillor Conference in Saskatoon.
In addition to the initial investment, SaskTel and the Ministry of Education will also begin consulting with school divisions to determine growing bandwidth needs in the long term.
“We have been talking to teachers, and one thing we’ve heard is the need for better internet access in schools,” Wall said. “Improvements to CommunityNet mean that all students across the province, will have better access to the digital tools and learning opportunities they need to succeed in a digital world, and to compete on an international level. This new investment is the most significant increase in bandwidth access for students since the program’s inception in 2001.”
CommunityNet is a dedicated, wide-area network delivered by SaskTel that connects executive government, health and education sectors in the province.
“CommunityNet is a critical part of classroom instruction, and the ability to have quick and uninterrupted service is crucial and a basic expectation of students today,” A. E. Peacock Collegiate Vice Principal Ward Strueby said. “An improvement in CommunityNet would be an improvement in our student learning, and that is always a good thing.”
“Access to bandwidth has been a challenge for teachers trying to access online resources and for administrators to access centralized services, and today’s announcement is about being responsive to the needs of teachers, students and school divisions,” Wall said. “The fact is that internet access is important with today’s use of technology in the classroom.”
Over the next six months, school divisions will experience significant improvements in speed that will make their web-based work more responsive and faster.
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For more information, contact:
Leya Moore
Education
Regina
Phone: 306-787-1069
Email: leya.moore@gov.sk.ca
Cell: 306-533-7506