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What is Digital Divide?
Do you remember doing homework and not having to submit it online? A long time ago, everything was done in pen and paper. Not only school work but other activities, including primary home necessities, nedeed to be done in person but nowadays, just using your mouse and a few clicks saves you so much time. In The Texas Tribune article “Analysis: A digital divide with dire consequences for Texas” Ross Ramsey states that "At the moment, internet is a necessity, a requirement for anyone who wants to stick with public health advice to stay at home, and also needs to get an education or work from home — not to mention paying bills, ordering groceries, catching up with friends and seeking entertainment" (2020). All of these changes sound amazing, but have you considered the number of people that do not have the opportunity to use a computer or a smartphone with a strong internet connection? A computer with internet access was a luxury long ago because not everybody could get one. Believe it or not, today, some people do not have strong internet access or the necessary equipment. This is known as the digital divide. According to Rachel Kraus in the video "The 'Digital Divide' and COVID-19's Impact on Internet Access" states that; “The digital divide is a gap in internet and technology access that prohibits people from participating in vital parts of society.” Unfortunately, to this day, this is something that is still happening and affects a large number of people.
According to Rachel Kraus (2021): When you are in the digital divide, that means:
· You do not have access to remote work
· It is harder to access job postings
· It is difficult to engage in education or re-training
· It is difficult to engage in any social services
· It is challenging to participate in civic life/civic participation
Learn more about the Digital Divide
COVID- 19 and Education
One of the most recent and well-known events that led to the use of the internet and technological equipment was the COVID-19 pandemic. Rachel Kraus states in the video, "With much of daily life moved online; the coronavirus pandemic dramatically exposed the digital divide" (2021). Everyone had to adapt, and the education field was not exempt from it. A change had to be made from having a classroom with students to a virtual room and seeing students through a computer screen. Teachers had to learn how to work with programs they were not using in their daily school routines and, at the same time, had to teach students how to log in to the class and submit assignments to grade them and continue instruction. In the video “The ‘Digital Divide’ and COVID-19’s Impact on Internet Access” Rachel Kraus explains, "A study from Common Sense Media and Boston Consulting Group looked at the extent of the digital divide among K-12 students in public schools and found about 16 million students were living in the digital divide”(2021). Not every student's access to a computer and a secure internet connection certainly affected their learning experience. In the video created by CBS Miami, Maria E. Salinas states, “Experts say the coronavirus is expanding educational inequities that already exist in continuing to leave the most vulnerable behind." Just think about those parents who were struggling to survive before the pandemic and now had to find ways to have a way to keep their kids in school without the necessary tools to do assignments and log in to the classes. Emergency programs emerged to help students who needed an internet connection. Unfortunately, people affected by the digital divide most likely live in rural areas with limited internet access. One of the programs was created by the Federal Communications Commission. According to the Federal Communications Commission, "The Emergency Broadband Benefit is an FCC program to help families and households struggling to afford internet service during the COVID-19 pandemic. This new benefit will connect eligible households to jobs, critical healthcare services, virtual classrooms, and so much more" (2022). Even though solutions were created to try and provide everyone with the same access to education, more solutions were needed. Families were already trying to survive and have the basic necessities covered, and the internet was not a priority making education for students more challenging.
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Race/Ethnicity groups facing the digital divide
Looking at statistics, different groups have experienced a challenge regarding digital data. Rachel Kraus how a study from Common Sense Media and Boston Consulting Group looked at the extent of the digital divide among K-12 students in public schools who had difficulty adapting to the new way of learning were Hispanic students. "Analysis from the Pew Research Center shows nearly 25% of Hispanic children live in households without high-speed internet and 18% of Latino teenagers don't have access to a home computer at all" (2021). Hispanics, in particular, are known for having many family members. The video posted by CBS Miami News, “The Digital Divide For Latino Students During The Coronavirus Pandemic” shows how the Hernandez family had three kids and how each had to adapt to continue learning. The video also shows how the youngest brother used a phone to complete assignments. Another issue this family had to deal with was the parents needing help understanding English and how to use the computer. In the video, the mother of these three students states how she felt frustrated because she did not know how to use the computer or understand the language (2020). These issues affect how students learn and their performance in school assignments. Not only was this group involved, but other groups almost faced the same problems. This was an issue throughout the county but here in Texas as well. In his report for The Texas Tribune, Ross Ramsey states,” The pandemic has moved Texas online for education, commerce, health care and entertainment. But relying on that broadband network to keep us stitched together while we stay at home to keep the new coronavirus at bay leaves about a third of the state’s households at an unsustainable social distance” (2020). These adaptations were only the beginning of changes in the education field. Nowadays, technology plays an essential part in students' learning experiences.
Taking Action
During the pandemic, everyone was trying to come up with a way to give everyone the same opportunities to access an internet connection. Even before that time, policymakers tried their best to help the community. The Southern Regional Education Board, 2015 states, "Education leaders and policymakers are steeped in so much data they often don't know how to make sense of it all. They spend resources on education and need accountability and return on investment to justify additional funding" (2018). They must have access to the necessary equipment and connectivity to complete everything assigned to them. According to Rachel Kraus in the video "The "Digital Divide" and COVID-19’s Impact on Internet Access” states that some companies have pledged to increase internet speeds to accommodate needs of the new reality (2020). On the other hand, Ramsey Ross explained one of the solutions here in Texas was “WesTex Connect, an internet service provider in Abilene, has set up free Wi-Fi hotspots in parking lots next to football stadiums, at the Abilene Convention Center, in Clyde, in Merkle, at the Farmer's Co-Op Gin in Stamford and next to a lumberyard in Stamford" (2020). Having that internet access helped students have access to school work. Later on, Ramsey also shows that "Most of the state's households — 94%, according to a preliminary report from Connected Nation Texas, a nonprofit focused on broadband access and adoption in the state — have access to at least a minimum level of broadband internet (2020). This shows that people have been working to provide equal opportunities, and a change has been made. According to the Federal Communications Commission "At the national level "Congress created the Affordable Connectivity Program, a new long-term, $14 billion program, to replace the Emergency Broadband Benefit Program." All of these actions have the primary goal of helping everyone to have strong internet access. Also, this can be good because new companies can hire people to do this work, which also benefits the economy.
Reflection
Every student deserves the same opportunities to succeed in school regardless of socioeconomic background, race, or ethnicity. Schools and government should work hand in hand to make the internet accessible to all students. COVID-19 showed us how important and is to have an internet connection and how much it can be used for. Ross Ramsey states, "The digital divide is not a new story, but it's newly pertinent at a moment when real interactions among people are limited and virtual interactions are vital. "(2020). Our parents and generations before them indeed did not see all these changes in the future. They may still have trouble adapting, but future generations would not know how things were done without the internet and connectivity. Think about all the activities we can perform with just a few clicks that before had to be done in person. The internet used to be considered a luxury, but today, it can be viewed as a need since we use it for many things. Let us work together and find a way to create change that will benefit everybody and prove that everyone has equal opportunities to succeed and become excellent members of our society.
Resources for Reference
References
CBS Miami. (2020, May 28). The Digital Divide For Latino Students During The Coronavirus Pandemic. [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2wU6pSKDxjI.
Emergency broadband benefit. (n.d.). Federal Communications Commission.
Mashable. (2021, April 26). The “Digital Divide” and COVID-19’s impact on internet access | Mashable [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xkbZPAJF88k
Ramsey, R. (2020, April 1). A digital divide with dire consequences for Texas. The Texas Tribune. https://www.texastribune.org/2020/04/01/digital-divide-dire-consequences-texas/
SREB. (2018). 10 Issues in Educational Technology (pp. 2–11) [Review of 10 Issues in Educational Technology]. Southern Regional Education Board.
Hello Jessika,
I enjoyed reading your article “Equal Access, Equal Opportunities: The Digital Divide in Educational Technology.” Your writing is well-structured, with accurate citations and adherence to APA format in both the writing and references section. Your blog post is well-written, easy to read, and has correct grammar, spelling, and punctuation.
I loved how you explained the concept of the Digital Divide is, and how things changed in a short period of time. It is remarkable to think that owning a computer with internet access was once considered a luxury and even today, there are still people who don’t have access to such technology. Also, education has undergone a significant transformation, moving from pen and paper to utilizing digital tools…