Recently, I was locked in studying during my lunch period for an upcoming Spanish quiz when an uncontrollable force knocked my academic arc off course. No matter how many times I refreshed the Schoology page, or tried to open the link, I would get the same error. This is a recurring theme at Prospect – it’s usually hard to go a full school day without hearing someone complain about Prospect’s terrible cell service, internet connection, and the apparent blocking of social apps like Snapchat and Instagram on school grounds.
In my two years at Prospect, I’ve grown pretty frustrated with Prospect’s WiFi, so I finally brought my concerns to Prospect Principal Greg Minter to see if school administration had experienced similar issues with the network, and if there were any plans to improve. “I never have any issues… it’s fast, it works reliably,” Minter said.
However, Prospect’s student body largely disagrees with Minter. In a KnightMedia survey of 391 students, 73.8% said that Prospect’s WiFi does not meet the demands of the student body. Sophomore Jack Aldworth described his issues with Prospect’s WiFi, “It never stays connected to my iPad… it always seems overloaded,” Aldworth said.
WiFi stands for “wireless fidelity,” and it allows electronics to connect to a wireless local network without being physically plugged in. The key word is “local” – in order to use WiFi, you have to be near the network. Cell service, on the other hand, enables you to make phone calls and send text messages. According to weboost.com, “Cellular networks divide a geographic area into smaller cells. Each cell has a cell tower which communicates with cellular devices. When a mobile device moves from one cell to another, the call or data connection is handed off from one tower to the next, allowing for seamless communication.”
Although Minter said he’s never had any issues with the school WiFi, he acknowledged that he’s received some complaints about efficient cell service. Putting an end to the popular theory that Prospect employs cell service blocking technology, he explained that those huge glass windows all around the school actually reflect cell signal and degrade service. This is due to their increased thickness, which was originally considered to be a positive due to their resistance to breaking, and their ability to keep in the heat and keep out the cold. The school has tried to lessen the impact by installing various devices and technology, but so far, nothing has made a huge difference. When it comes to both cell service and WiFi, there’s definitely a lack of efficiency. However, these are both symptoms that come with having a huge number of devices being in the same place at the same time. “2,400 people in this building all with cell phones…all trying to ping off the same cell tower… that’s going to be a problem,” Minter said.
From all of this, I draw two conclusions. On one hand, when I’m frustratedly trying to load my Spanish homework, I obviously crash out on Greg Minter and the school’s tech department. However, when I really consider it, this is something that any school experiences, and it isn’t fair to blame school administration or the district for the lack of efficient service. In reality, it’s out of their control.
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