Packets, addresses and routes
How data is split into packets and finds its way across the network.
Planned. This module is part of the plan and is not written yet.
Why it matters
When the Lantern's dish is up, a lesson update travels from far away in many small packets, each finding its own way and being put back together on arrival.
Draft outline · in review- For
- Level 7–10 · JSS 1 to SSS 1
- Inside
- 5 lessons and a test · about 60 minutes
- Topic
- How the internet works · foundation, 1 of 4
Inside the module.
5 lessons in order, about 60 minutes in all, then a short test. Learners go at their own pace; the minutes are a guide, not a timetable.
Draft outline · in review
Lesson 1: Splitting data into packets
Why big messages are sent as small numbered packets.
Explain15 min, from minute 0
Lesson 2: IP addresses
Every device on a network has an address, like a house on a street.
Explain10 min, from minute 15
Lesson 3: Routers and routes
Routers pass each packet one step closer to its address.
Explain15 min, from minute 25
Lesson 4: Pass the packet
A simulation: route packets across a map of towns and see some arrive out of order.
Investigate15 min, from minute 40
Lesson 5: Check your skills
Follow a message from sender to receiver.
Review5 min, from minute 55
End-of-module test
Explain how data travels in packets and describe what IP addresses and routers do.
Mastered at 85% or more. Retake it until you pass; nothing is lost, and each try gives feedback.
Already know it? A Challenge Test (planned) clears the whole module: 90% overall, no objective below 75%.
Last stageafter about 60 min
Practicalities
Draft outline · in reviewBuilt to run offline
Planned to run on the Lantern's own computer, with no internet needed.
Languages
Planned first in English; every module aims to reach all of the Lantern's languages.
Try a question.
One question from the module, as a learner would meet it. Have a go, then open the worked solution a step at a time.
Draft outline · in review
A photo is sent as 50 packets. Some take different routes and arrive out of order. What happens?
Particulars
Where it sits
What a learner can do after it
- Explain how data travels in packets.
- Describe what an IP address and a router do.
Needs first
This module has no prerequisites of its own. Like every first step, it assumes the Digital skills gateway: the first module on using a computer, which a Challenge Test clears in minutes.
Level
Level 7–10 · JSS 1 to SSS 1
Level mappings are approximate. A qualified teacher or lecturer in each country must check them before they appear in the app.
Difficulty for its level
1 of 4 · Foundation
Time
About 60 minutes
Alignments
- Aligned to CSTApartial · in review2-NI-04
Alignment in review until a qualified teacher or lecturer checks it. No exam body, university or vendor endorses us; learners still sit the real exam.
Challenge Test
Planned: a Challenge Test to prove you know it and skip it. Pass at 90% overall, with no objective below 75%.
University courses it previews
Computer Science, Information Technology, Telecommunications Engineering
On these pathways
The route here.
Everything this module builds on, drawn as a route from its foundations. Solid lanes must be mastered first, or cleared by a Challenge Test; dashed lanes are suggestions that never lock anything.
This module has no prerequisites of its own. Like every first step, it assumes the Digital skills gateway: the first module on using a computer, which a Challenge Test clears in minutes.
Help light the room where this is learned.
Every route on this map starts in a classroom with 24 stations, a tutor that works offline and a facilitator upstairs. Four are planned and waiting for light.