Lesson Plan: Broadband: How Fiber Optics Revolutionized Communications And Made Broadband Possible
Online
Course With Certificate of Completion
Intended For:
- Students in courses covering science, engineering or management
- Technicians working in
fiber optics
- Project managers, business managers, designers,
contractors and installers of fiber optic projects
- Users of broadband communications systems involved
in designing and managing networks
- May
be used as preparation for the FOA Broadband microcredential
What You Will Learn In This Basic Self-Study Program:
- What broadband is and how it works
- The basics of communications networks - fiber and wireless
- How users connect to worldwide communications networks over wireless and fiber communications networks
- What the Internet is, how it works and the importance of data centers
Get your Certificate of Completion for completing the "Fiber
U Broadband" online self-study program. See
below.
Broadband,
what we today call high speed Internet access, has become a necessity
for everyone. In less than half a century, communications on a backbone
of fiber optics has revolutionized communications and, in many ways,
society in general. The technologies that make broadband possible are
the Internet and fiber optics, connecting the continents, cities,
buildings, homes and just about everybody worldwide.
How did we get from an era when telecommunication was just making a
telephone call or sending a telegram to today’s world where every person
and every piece of information is available at the click of a mouse or
touch on a screen, practically anywhere in the world? How did we get
from a time when a phone was connected on copper wires to being able to
connect with enormous bandwidth using fiber optics at home or on a
handheld wireless device practically anywhere?
How does broadband work? This course will explain not only how broadband
works, but how it was developed and how it is integrated into our world
today. It is intended to be an introduction to broadband communications
technology appropriate for engineering, science or management students
at the university, technical college or technical high school level. It
can be a module within a course or a standalone course.
A microcredential is available for those completing the course successfully, the FOA Broadband Badge.
How This Self-Study Program Works
This Fiber U self-study program will divide broadband into ten topics - see the links below. Each
topic will have a brief introduction to the subject, telling
you what you should learn from that lesson, link you to
reference materials in several formats: the Broadband section of the FOA Online Reference Guide which is the primary reference for this course, chapters in the FOA Guide to Broadband and FOA
YouTube Videos,
Each lesson will have a quiz for you to test your
comprehension. Quizzes are taken online; when you take the
quiz online, it will grade your answers and give you the
correct answers along with an explanation. After you check
your answers, return to the study materials to find out why
you missed any questions. When you finish all lessons, you
should be well-versed in the basics of broadband and
ready for more!
Get
a Certificate of Completion When You Complete The
Course
After you complete the FOA Broadband online
self-study course, you can now take an
online exam and get a Certificate of Completion for this
online course.
You should
complete all lessons including taking the quiz
("Test Your
Comprehension") at the end of every lesson. When
you think
you are prepared, you can take an online exam for this course.
Notes on taking the exam: The
exam is taken online with an automated testing system. It may not be
available on some company networks or VPNs. Taking the Fiber U
Certificate of Completion Exam requires making payment for the exam
online through PayPal using a credit card or PayPal. The payment system is not
available everywhere in the world, so it may not be available in your
country. If so, the exam is not available to you. Check here to see if PayPal is available in your country.
Please
note: receiving this Certificate of Completion does not include FOA
certification but it does become
documentation of your knowledge of broadband
and should be part of your portfolio of
documented knowledge, other training and work
experience that can qualify you to apply for FOA CFOT certification.
For more information on the FOA and its
credentials, go to the FOA
page on credentials.
Learning More and Developing Skills
Fiber U online courses can help you develop the knowledge of a
subject like fiber optics but are not going to provide the
hands-on exercises needed to develop the skills used in
working with the actual components. If you are just getting
started in fiber optics, you should consider attending an FOA-Approved
school where you will be trained in hands-on labs to
develop the skills needed to be successful in fiber optics.
Reference Materials
FOA
Online Reference Guide to Fiber Optics
All lesson plans include links to the FOA Guide pages on Broadband.
The Fiber Optic Association Guide To Fiber Broadband
How Fiber Optics Revolutionized Communications And Made Broadband Possible
All
lesson plans include links to the relevant
chapters of the FOA Guide To Broadband.
FOA
YouTube Videos
Some lesson plans include FOA YouTube video lectures on relevant
topics.
Ready? Get
started!
Lesson
Plans:
Read the materials
linked on each lesson plan and take the quiz.
- Lesson
1: Introduction To Broadband
- Lesson
2: Fiber Broadband Jargon
- Lesson
3: Networks And Communications Technology
- Lesson
4:
Fiber Optic Telecommunications
- Lesson
5: Fiber Optics For Wireless Networks
- Lesson
6: Fiber To The Home
- Lesson
7: Data Communications Networks
- Lesson
8: The Internet And Data Centers
- Lesson
9: Fiber Makes It Smart
- Lesson
10: Building Fiber Broadband Networks (includes links to take the Fiber U Broadband Certificate of Completion test.)
How
To Get Your Certificate of Completion For This Course
This information is
provided by The Fiber Optic Association, Inc. as a benefit
to those interested in teaching, designing, manufacturing,
selling, installing or using fiber optic communications
systems or networks. It is intended to be used as an
overview and/or basic guidelines and in no way should be
considered to be complete or comprehensive. These
guidelines are strictly the opinion of the FOA and the
reader is expected to use them as a basis for learning, as
a reference and for creating their own documentation,
project specifications, etc. Those working with fiber
optics in the classroom, laboratory or field should follow
all safety rules carefully. The FOA assumes no liability
for the use of any of this material.
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