News Release

Cisco Borderless Network Architecture Deployed in 1,500 schools in the Republic of Tatarstan

Cisco Technologies to Provide Advanced Learning Resources to 378,000 Schoolchildren and 42,000 Teachers While Helping to Close the Gap Between Urban and Rural Schools
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Apr 16, 2012

MOSCOW April 16, 2012 – Cisco today announced that a unified distance learning system based on the Cisco® Borderless Network Architecture has been deployed at 1,500 schools in the Republic of Tatarstan, one of the leading republics of the Russian Federation in the Volga Federal District.  The solution helps ensure reliable, highly secure access to information at any time from any place through any device.  It helps establish equal rights to education and delivers collaboration tools to the teachers who can get acquainted with the best practices and methods and proliferate education beyond the classroom walls. The project includes installation of 9,000 Cisco wireless hotspots.  It was implemented by the IT Center of the Republic of Tatarstan.        

Creation of the unified distance learning platform is especially important for Tatarstan's rural schools, which have to rely on obsolete network infrastructure and computer hardware.  Rural schools rarely provide training in information and communications technology (ICT) due to limited Internet access and insufficient educational resources. 

Key Facts / Highlights:

  • The Cisco Borderless Network Architecture includes routing, switching, mobility, data security and the optimization of application performance in wide area networks.
  • The common distance-learning platform set up in the Tatarstan schools offers wide collaboration opportunities to teachers, students and parents.  Participants of the project have received e-mail addresses for data exchange. Teachers can now use the education portal, create virtual classes, offer specialized content to new students and quickly send notifications in case of emergency.  The common distance-learning platform can also demonstrate video materials created by students. Correct and fast delivery of video content to end-user devices is provided by a medianet. The system can recognize the types of media content transferred via wireless and wire line networks and - when necessary - change the format of streamed video. 
  • In addition, parents can now interact with the schools more frequently and in a more productive way.  As a result, they can better trace the progress of their children, quickly detect problems, and take corrective measures. 
  • The system also helps schools exchange knowledge and ideas. To reduce outages and interference of the hardware, the solution uses Cisco Motion with Cisco CleanAir® technology. CleanAir™ can detect connected wireless devices. It can also restore itself after failures and support self-optimization of the wireless network. The wireless infrastructure of Tatarstan schools uses the innovative Cisco ClientLink to reduce coverage gaps and boost data exchange rates (both upstream and downstream) even when out-of-date devices are used. 
  • At the second phase of the project, advanced structured cable systems are to be built in the remaining 400 schools of the Republic of Tatarstan. 

Supporting Quotes:

Almaz Valliulin, head of the IT Center of the Republic of Tatarstan:

"Having compared the Cisco architectural approach with solutions of other vendors, we saw its obvious benefits, such as readiness to cloud computing, video, highly secure transport and data privacy." 

Azat Mubarakshin, project manager, IT Center of the Republic of Tatarstan:

"One of the most difficult tasks of educational network design is the deployment of an open collaboration platform without compromising security.  Cisco Borderless Networks solved that problem by offering a unified approach to data protection.  As a result, security can be maintained in any type of access -  wire line, wireless, or VPN - with powerful network interaction services based on identification credentials and user authentication. Implementation of the distance learning project is a big step forward ensuring better preparation to exams and admission to higher education establishments."

Tags, Keywords: Russia, Cisco, Cisco Borderless Networks, Cisco CleanAir Technology, Cisco ClientLink

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Cisco (NASDAQ: CSCO) is the worldwide leader in networking that transforms how people connect, communicate and collaborate. Information about Cisco can be found at http://www.cisco.com. For ongoing news, please go to http://newsroom.cisco.com. Cisco equipment in Russia is supplied through its authorized channel partners by Cisco Systems International BV, a wholly owned subsidiary of Cisco Systems, Inc.

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