A Grade 4 class at Red Wing school works away on its Chromebooks. (submitted photo/Lisa Campbell)

By Nigel Maxwell

Technology

Local RMs call on government to speed up internet service at rural schools

Mar 16, 2023 | 5:00 PM

Concerns related to slow internet speed in rural areas and the impact on schools, were front and centre during this week’s Saskatchewan Association of Rural Municipalities convention (SARM).

One of the specific resolutions discussed, put forward by the rural municipalities (RMs) of Prince Albert and Garden River, stated there’s a disparity with respect to internet connectivity between urban and rural schools in the province. The resolution was subsequently carried after receiving 97 per cent support.

RM of Prince Albert Reeve Eric Schmalz explained back in November there was a round table forum, and involved representatives from the public school division as well as regional RMs.

“They wanted to let us know what kind of issues they are seeing or having as issues in providing services to our kids in the rural areas,” he said.

From those discussions, emerged concerns related to connectivity in the classrooms. Schmalz explained there was once a time when the only laptop in the room, was the one being used by the teacher.

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“Now that’s changed. Every child in the classroom has got an electronic learning tool and we want to make sure everyone has equal opportunity to use the best resources at hand to provide for their education,” he said.

With the carrying of the resolution, it’s up to SARM to help lobby the government and all internet service providers in the province to jointly review and make recommendations on expanding broadband access to rural schools. Schmalz admitted his own surprise the resolution did not receive 100 per cent support.

“[Internet access] is not necessarily a nice things to have, is a necessity in today’s day and age for farms and businesses that are operating outside large urban centres, and are away from hard wired fibre optics,” he said.

Schmalz noted the example of East Central School which has a hard line but he explained for some reason there’s been a throttle placed on how much access is granted.

Garden River Reeve Ryan Scragg noted that in the case of Meath Park school, they use the same service he has in his own home.

“When our rural schools are at such a disadvantage compared to the urban schools, I think it’s something important to bring up and speak out against,” he said.

Noting the school divisions have done a great job already bringing the issue forth to the government, Scragg expressed his own desire adding SARM to the conversation, a more united voice can help push the issue farther and get something done.

Reeve Eric Schmalz addresses the SARM convention. (Submitted photo/ Eric Schmalz)

A spokesperson for the Saskatchewan Rivers School Division told paNOW they support the recommendations made and are working to address the variance in internet access between urban and rural schools. Chief Financial Officer Jerrold Pidborochynski explained all the schools have a SaskTel connection, and the download speed is simply much higher in the city.

“So if you have the same number of students using the same number of devices, it’s gonna be slower in a rural school,” he said.

Pidborochynski also expressed his support for the opportunity to partner with SARM and the local RMs.

“It’s a concern to them and it’s definitely a concern to us as well,” he said.

Response from the Ministry of Education

In a statement provided to paNOW, the Government of Saskatchewan indicated it wants all students to have the supports they need to succeed, including access to reliable broadband services.

“SaskTel continues to invest in rural broadband expansion – bringing higher speeds to businesses and residences and allowing students to have improved connectivity when they are away from school premises. Through its Rural Fibre Initiative, SaskTel has committed to investing $200 million to expand its infiNET service to over 110,000 residents and businesses in more than 130 rural communities, by the end of March 2025,” the statement explained.

The statement goes on to note CommunityNet provides highspeed broadband to all schools in Saskatchewan and the most recent CommunityNet agreement for schools provides funding of $70 million, over five years.

“The network capacity is reviewed annually to ensure broadband speeds are meeting schools’ needs. All schools are served with dedicated connections, with most having fibre for over 10 years,” the Ministry explained.

“The Ministry of Education meets regularly with all school divisions and we work together to resolve all broadband concerns.”

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nigel.maxwell@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @nigelmaxwell