Several years ago, Rajshahi University authorities brought the entire campus under broadband internet coverage with the aim of enhancing students’ learning activities.
However, due to the poor speed and quality of the internet connection, students are ending up wasting extra time while accessing internet-based e-library, online tutorials, learning activities and some other online-based activities, as a substantial amount of time is spent on buffering.
According to campus sources, 11 academic buildings of the university have been brought under internet coverage for the convenience of online learning activities of the students. The internet connection in these academic buildings is very poor. Sometimes it becomes very difficult to connect on students’ smartphones.
As a result, the students are not getting much benefit from the internet connection in these academic buildings.
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The authorities also provided three or four WiFi router connections on each floor in the residential halls so that the students can get internet service in their rooms. But the capacity of the routers is less than the requisite. Unless they’re in the rooms closest to the router, they are hardly able to get a connection worth surfing the net.
According to the ICT center of the university, the speed of the central server of the university is 2.80 Gbps. The connection is supplied through various routers on campus.
However, students are complaining that they get Mbps connection very early in the morning. For the rest of the day, the speed is only a few kilobytes.
The students said that they have to get involved in various online activities like meetings, seminars, workshops, online courses etc.
In most cases, they have to buy their own data packs to participate in those programs as the wifi connection is simply not good enough to allow them to participate in those activities.
A residential student of Syed Amir Hall of the university said that the internet speed in the hall is “slower than a tortoise”. The connection is not good at all due to poor routers. Even if we have to pay for the internet, we are not getting quality service.
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Nazmus Sakib Zihad, a residential student of Madar Bux Hall said, “As soon as we connect the internet, buffering starts. Apart from that, the wifi disconnects. So, I have to buy data packs to do academic activities.”
In this regard, Babul Islam, the director of the ICT Centre of the university, said the speed of more than 100 megabytes is often provided from the central server. But the speed gets slower when many devices are connected to the routers. “We are planning to make internet rooms for different halls and floors, including the ‘Gonoroom’ of the student’s hall,” Babul said.