Classroom Internet Access Not Enough

W A S H I N G T O N, Dec. 19 -- Schools connected to the Internet but lacking instant, complete access to its resources will be left behind thiscentury, just as those with dated textbooks were in the last one, abipartisan panel concludes.

The report, released today by the Web-based EducationCommission, argues that it’s now an ancient goal to have merely acomputer — even one with an Internet hookup — in every Americanclassroom.

Instead, broadband networks that instantly transmit video andaudio are vital for meaningful education in the future, yet thattechnology is moot if teachers aren’t continuously trained in it.

Very Specific Suggestions

“The legacy of the one-room schoolhouse is holding back theone-world classroom,” said Sen. Bob Kerrey, a Nebraska Democratwho as chairman led the yearlong effort to examine how best to moveschools forward in the information age.

Complete with suggestions for policy changes and long-termgoals, the 163-page report encapsulates hundreds of interviews andnumerous studies by the commission, which included five members ofCongress and various educators.

“I don’t think I’ve ever been involved in anything in 22 yearsof government more intense and comprehensive than this work,” saidRep. Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., who was the commission’s vice chairman.

The goals are broad, but the suggestions are specific. Forexample, the commission proposes colleges scrap requirements thatstudents attend at least 12 hours of coursework — and half of it ina classroom — to be eligible for federal grants or scholarships.

School buildings are becoming less important, Isakson said,because the lessons taught inside them are often available with aclick of a mouse.

“You don’t even have to come to the United States and you cangraduate from Georgia Tech,” Isakson said. “We need to repeal ormodify some of these regulations the Internet has made archaic.”