Case Study   Badsey First School Goes Wireless   School: Badsey First School Description: 4-10 co-educational with a nursery on site Location: Evesham, Worcestershire, U.K. Number of pupils: 260 The Problem: As the Internet increasingly becomes part of today's curriculum, the school had to expand its existing IT infrastructure. The staff of Badsey First School realised that in order to provide full and comprehensive IT lessons they first needed to review their IT support. Badsey First School is situated within an unusually shaped building, and had minimal space for cabling. The school staff and governors met with a local 3Com reseller, evesham.com, to discuss possible solutions for the school. The group discussed the various solutions available, including a full hardwire system and wireless technology. The school chose to install hardwire cabling as this qualified for a government grant as a building improvement. However, a wireless network offered enormous flexibility both immediately and for the longer term. The Solution: Badsey First School deployed the 3Com® Wireless LAN solution to enhance its network infrastructure and provide interactive lessons: The 3Com Access Point supports up to 63 simultaneous users at a distance of 31 metres. The school installed 3 access points, which connect directly back to the school server. The 3Com PC Card allows the user to connect to the network via their notebook PC without the need for any additional wires or cabling. The Benefit: The school has found the solution easy to use and reliable. The 3Com wireless network gives staff the ability to work with the children anywhere and at anytime. Teachers use the wireless technology for a range of activities such as interactive lessons to maintain the attention span of the children. When combined with a notebook PC, the technology enables the staff to run lessons from throughout the school campus, including the playground. By the end of the next school year one in eleven pupils will need to have a PC, and the government will provide equipment for those schools that do not have such facilities. Badsey First School already has the assigned quota and intends to increase its IT resources beyond the government targets this year. The 3Com Wireless LAN solution has revolutionised teaching methods at the school by offering new ways of accessing the network and the Internet, while avoiding a costly cabling exercise. 3Com is a registered trademark and the 3Com logo is a trademark of 3Com Corporation. All other company and product names may be trademarks of the respective companies with which they are associated.