Students in 58 remote Territory schools are set to receive improvements in their internet and connectivity speed.
The Territory Labor Government-funded Schools Connectivity Uplift Program is a $4 million per year scheme to provide telecommunication upgrades to NT schools over the next four years.
The program involves bringing digital connectivity to all NT schools through a mixture of fibre, wireless and satellite technologies, including low earth orbit (LEO) satellites.
Remote Central Australian schools are being prioritised in the first stage of the project, with a rollout of LEO satellite dish installations that can provide fast WAN speeds without the significant costs of trenching fibre optic cables.
Installations have already commenced, with 22 schools expected to be completed by the end of Term 4 and all remote schools expected to be upgraded by June 2024.
Most remote NT schools are currently connected by the Territory Government run ‘Satellite to All Remote Sites’ (STARS) technology, which has been in use for many years.
The existing STARS service is a Geosynchronous Equatorial Orbit (GEO) satellite system, located about 36,000km above the Earth. This distance introduces a delay from sending the signal from the school up to the satellite and back down to Earth.
LEO satellites are located far closer to Earth than GEO satellites (1500km compared with 36,000km) so do not have the same latency issues.
Most NT school locations are included in the digital connectivity upgrade program, with 58 remote schools receiving a LEO antenna installation, providing more reliable access to bandwidth-heavy applications such as Microsoft Teams.
In communities where there are other government agencies using STARS, they will also have a LEO service installed to ensure best value for Territory.
Attributable to Minister for Corporate and Digital Development, Selena Uibo:
“The Territory Labor Government is investing in telecommunications upgrades to our remote schools to bridge the digital divide.
“As a former teacher I know how important it is for teachers and administration staff to have access to faster and reliable internet access.
“This week I was at Bulman School I saw firsthand what a difference faster access to online learning resources is making to children. It is also beneficial for adult learners as during my visit school staff were able to access first aid courses online, which would have been challenging before the telecommunications upgrades.”
Attributable to Minister for Education, Eva Lawler:
“Every single child, no matter where they live, deserves a quality education, and quality access to online learning resources.
“For those living in remote areas of the NT this is life changing, we haven’t just delivered telecommunication upgrades, we have delivered improved access to countless educational tools which can and will expand a student’s learning journey.
“This is also an exciting opportunity to assist our teachers in the bush in connecting, engaging and educating the Territory’s future.”
Northern Territory Government
