Dive Brief:

• In some California school districts, like Coachella Valley, innovative new offerings of mobile Wi-Fi are allowing students who don't have Internet at home to bridge the homework gap.
• Instead of resorting to going to coffee shops like Starbucks, students can now use the Internet on some school buses, which are parked and used as community hubs in places where a dearth of connectivity exists.
• In total, eight Wi-Fi buses visit neighborhoods and park overnight, and the district is also focusing on transforming salvaged cars into Wi-Fi hubs.

Dive Insight:

Although California leads the way in a number of innovations related to education, the idea of using school buses as mobile Wi-Fi hotspots isn't actually new. In Iowa, in spring 2015, mobile wireless routers were installed in a number of school buses to help students with long commutes or late extra-curricular schedules, find time to study. Iowa's Carroll Community School District installed routers on six buses used for late night commutes after parents complained about their children's lack of time for homework.

District leaders looking for ways to help students connect to the internet outside of school buildings should pay attention to California's use of salvaged cars as hotspots. Unlike school buses, which need to be used daily, salvaged cars could potentially remain in communities for longer stretches of time. Attention should be paid, however, to security to ensure devices can remain in use for all without problems.