Government plans for UK wide mobile broadband scheme

In September 2008 the government announced that it was beginning a new scheme to help narrow the broadband divide in poorer areas. A large part of the UK’s countryside still has problems getting adequate broadband connections, in an attempt to solve this issue the government dished out a series of grants awarding suitable households with £540 to spend on a laptop and a year’s subscription of mobile broadband. The government sponsored pilot trial allowed young people and low income households in Oldham and Suffolk to gain easier internet access.

After the initial success of the trial, the government has decided to expand the scheme across the country and intends to provide full coverage by 2011. The main ethos of the scheme is to provide underprivileged households with better access to internet in the effort to improve learning at an early age. Trials and studies commissioned by the government show that children with broadband access at home do better with their studies compared to those that have limited access. Some poorer families only have access to pay as you go mobile broadband; these forms of limitations can adversely affect a child’s ability to learn.

A report commissioned by the government states “there are significant educational benefits associated with having access to technology at home. This availability of technology gives learners greater choice about where, when and how they study. Research shows that this helps to motivate learners and improve attainment. We also know that learning technologies in the home can serve as a focal point for parents to become more actively involved in their child’s education.”

For once I happen to agree with Labours stance, improved technology within households helps both parents and children to achieve their full learning potential. Broadband has now become an essential utility for anyone under 60. However, we must walk a careful line in the digital age, any improvements in technology are going to play an important part in educating people for the 21st century, but we must remember that overdependence on technology can often eradicate essential skills passed down from older generations.