British schools are using satellites
Now more than 1000 schools have signed up to the broadband educational content provider Espresso Broadband Ltd. The company uses satellite technology to deliver content for both pupils and teachers across England and Wales.
The Rosetta Primary, a 600 pupil school in Newham, England represents a milestone in the use of satellite applications in school education in Britain. It is the 1000th school to subscribe to Espresso Broadband Ltd. The company was initially partly funded by ESA under a project called "Espresso for Schools" in the period 1999-2000.
Unlike other educational content providers, Espresso uses satellite technology to deliver its weekly updates to schools. This means that the information is dynamic and up-to-date. Satellite technology is also the perfect solution for delivering schools with video-rich educational material because it is so much faster than terrestrial networks and can reach remote areas where a terrestrial connection is not an option.
A satellite dish and Espresso box (see diagram) are required to receive and store the information that is broadcast via satellite. The Espresso box is a web server which contains Espresso for Schools. Once the information has been retrieve by the Espresso box it is instantly available to any computer that is connected to the network within the school.
Espresso's multimedia educational service is fully-indexed and searchable. It features video clips from television, articles from newspapers and specially filmed video from Espresso's in-house production team. It delivers materials that help teachers teach and students to learn. Teachers can access information and tools that have been directly linked to national curriculum guidelines and requirements.
