3. ICT infrastructure in canadian schools

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If schools and teachers are to be effective in integrating ICT into the learning environment, then having the necessary infrastructure or plan to acquire and maintain the infrastructure is the crucial first step. About two-thirds of school principals reported having a technology plan for ICT acquisition, upgrading and replacement (Chart 1). Public schools (72%) were more likely to have a technology plan than private schools (26%), while large schools (73%) were more likely to have such a plan than small schools (57%).

A closer examination of provincial and territorial data revealed that all schools in the Yukon reported having a technology plan for ICT acquisition, upgrading and replacement. In addition, the majority of schools in Alberta (81%), Ontario (73%), Manitoba (72%), New Brunswick (71%) and Saskatchewan (70%) also had a technology plan. The proportion of schools with such a plan in the remaining provinces and territories fell below the national average of 67%.

Chart 1
Percentage of schools with a technology plan for ICT acquisition, upgrading and replacement by province and territory, 2003/04

Note: Estimate for the territory of Nunavut suppressed to meet confidentiality requirements of the Statistics Act.

3.1 Availability of computers for students

Computerization is widespread in Canadian schools with both desktops and laptops being used in the learning environment. According to school principals, the majority of school computers being used for educational purposes during the 2003/04 year were desktops (94%). Laptops and notebooks were used to a lesser extent (6%) in the learning environment, however they represented a relatively high proportion of computers in private schools (20%) and in schools with both elementary and secondary instructional levels (12%).

The proportion of desktop computers used for educational purposes varied only slightly by province and territory, from about 94% in Quebec, Ontario and Alberta to 99% in the Yukon and Prince Edward Island. In turn, school laptops and notebooks were most prevalent in Alberta, Quebec and Ontario (6%) (Table 3).

On average, there were about 72 computers per school used for educational purposes in 2003/04. However, the number of computers depends largely on the instructional level and size of the school. In general, the number of computers increases with these school characteristics (Table 4). For example, secondary schools have more computers on average than elementary schools, and the same is true for larger schools compared to smaller schools. This relationship is consistent with the average number of students, which increases with instructional level and school size, and since secondary schools are typically larger in size, the two characteristics are clearly correlated. But what does this mean for the availability of computers in schools?

Computers were more readily available to students in rural schools, higher grades (secondary) and in smaller schools. This is reflected in the student-to-computer ratio, which indicates the number of students per computer in the school (Table 4, Chart 2). In 2003/04, the median ratio was estimated at about five students for every computer in K-12 schools. For small schools, the median ratio was only three students per computer, compared to six students for large schools. Since large schools have more students per computer than do small schools, this suggests that the increase in the number of students in large schools exceeds the increase in the number of computers in those schools. In 2000, the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) found that a typical 15-year-old Canadian student attended a school at which there was one computer for every six students; the OECD average stood at one computer for every thirteen students (Statistics Canada 2002).

Chart 2
Student-to-computer ratio (median) by school characteristic, Canada, 2003/04

The ratios of students to computers also vary by instructional level and urban/rural location. There was one computer for about every four students at the secondary level, compared with one for every six elementary students. In urban schools, about five students shared a computer, while there were only four students per computer in rural schools. There was no significant difference in the student-to-computer ratios between public and private schools, even though private schools are typically smaller in size (Table 4, Chart 2). Certainly the student-to-computer ratio by itself does not convey much information about the actual functionality and use of the equipment, but serves as an indicator of the existing ICT infrastructure and its availability in a given school (Statistics Canada 2001).

As was previously noted, the student-to-computer ratio is strongly related to school size, as it is to some of the other school characteristics. For example, a lower student-to-computer ratio in rural schools may reflect the smaller size of such schools and thus, for a given number of computers, fewer students sharing a computer.

Across the provinces and territories, the Yukon had the fewest students to a computer, while the larger provinces of Quebec and Ontario, along with Prince Edward Island had the highest number of students per computer (Chart 3). In general, the same story can be told for the provinces and territories as for the whole of Canada – computers are more readily available in secondary, smaller and rural schools (i.e. these schools typically have a lower student-to-computer ratio). However there were some exceptions. In Quebec, there were nearly seven secondary students to a computer, compared with six at the elementary level. Nova Scotia was the only province in which large schools reported slightly fewer students per computer (4.6) than did medium size schools (5.5), and there was no difference between the urban and rural student-to-computer ratios in Nunavut schools.

Chart 3
Student-to-computer ratio (median) by province and territory, 2003/04

3.2 Computer operating systems, processing speeds and technical support

The quality of the ICT infrastructure currently available in schools is one way to assess the capability and usefulness of computers and their applications for the learning environment.

Principals were asked to indicate the proportion of their school computers that were running on new or recent operating systems, as opposed to older operating systems. Just under one-quarter of the K-12 schools in Canada had at least half of their computers running on the most recent operating systems (Statistics Canada 2004a). Depending on the instructional level, however, many of the computer applications available in schools may not necessarily require the latest operating system in order to be useful learning tools.

Secondary schools were more likely to have at least half of their computers equipped with the most recent operating systems than elementary schools (31% compared to 18%). This may reflect a more advanced level of instruction in secondary schools, which may in turn be complemented by more advanced learning tools. Private schools were also more likely (34%) to have at least half of their computers running on newer operating systems than public schools (21%).

Among the provinces and territories, Quebec and the Atlantic provinces had the lowest proportions of schools with at least half of their computers running on the most recent operating system. By contrast, schools in Alberta, Saskatchewan and the Northwest Territories were most likely to have computers running on up-to-date operating systems (Chart 4).

Most Canadian elementary and secondary school computers (54%) were equipped with medium processor speeds, while only 16% were considered high speed computers. It was private schools that had the largest proportion of computers with high processing speeds (28%) – nearly twice the proportion of high speed computers in public schools. Small schools were most likely to have computers with low speeds, followed by elementary and rural schools. Since elementary and rural schools tend to also be smaller, these variables are likely interrelated.

School computers in Saskatchewan were the most likely to have high processing speeds (25%), while only 5% of school computers in Prince Edward Island, 8% in Nunavut and 10% in Quebec and Newfoundland and Labrador were reported to be as fast. As Chart 4 demonstrates, there is generally a positive relationship between speed of school computers and schools with computers running on newer operating systems – as the proportion of schools with more recent operating systems for at least half of their computers increased, so did the proportion of computers running on high processing speeds in that province. There are, however, a few notable exceptions. In Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, the proportion of computers with high speed processors exceeded the proportion of schools with at least half of their computers running on newer operating systems. In Quebec, these proportions were nearly equal and in Alberta – the province where 41% of elementary and secondary schools have at least half of their computers running on newer operating systems – the proportion of computers running on high processor speed was surprisingly low.

Chart 4
School computer operating systems and processor speeds by province and territory, 2003/04

Note: Estimates for the % of schools with at least half of computers running on newer operating systems in Prince Edward Island, the Yukon and Nunavut are suppressed to meet confidentiality requirements of the Statistics Act.

* Lower reliability estimates due to sample size.

Principals were also asked how much time was spent on maintenance and technical support for ICT infrastructure per month. Overall, just over 12 minutes per school computer were dedicated to support and maintenance each month. While schools with a majority of low processor speed computers reported only 11 minutes of support and maintenance per month per computer, nearly 16 minutes of technical time per computer per month were dedicated to schools with high processor speed computers. The amount of time spent on technical support increased with the computer processor speed, something that may be explained by the fact that higherend computers are capable of supporting a wider range of applications and uses, thereby requiring more time for upgrades and technical maintenance. It may also be that the presence of faster computers reflects the general ICT environment in these schools; schools with more money for higher-end computers may also have more money to support and maintain the infrastructure (Statistics Canada 2004a).

For the provinces and territories, time spent per school computer per month ranged from only 6 minutes in Prince Edward Island to 18 minutes in New Brunswick, Quebec, Saskatchewan and the Northwest Territories (Table 5). The same positive relationship emerged between time devoted to technical support and maintenance of computers, and processor speed.