Standard #1: Equity & Citizenship Advocate

Deeper Thinking About Digital Equity

Below, you can read my thinking surrounding digital equity. This was posted via discussion forum for my peers to engage with. 

"The "Digital Divide" was a term and idea that I had not considered before. After looking at the resources supplied in the Google Slides for this week, and was able to understand that I actually see the divide in action almost every day. If I were to define this in my own terms, I would say that it shows the separation between those who have had regular access to technology and its extensions and those who are not able to have access. I believe that this is an issue across many different levels. Meaning, we see this in the lives of students, within school districts, and then again at the professional / work level. 

While I am new in the classroom, I have noticed among my students which children have access to technology at home, and who seem comfortable using technology in the classroom. Now, my students are five and six years old, so I personally believe that at such a young age, is it not necessarily a bad thing that students are not "tech savvy". However, it is also important to consider that even if these students are not using technology at home, it has become a large part of school days- at least in my district. For instance, my classroom has its own set of student iPads that are used for various educational apps, as well as projects. Students are able to learn via technology while at school. This is not the case for all students, or even all schools (in Vermont, and nationwide). 

On a personal level, I was an undergraduate student at the beginning of the COVID-19 Pandemic. When we were sent home, I remember many peers feeling worried about the switch to digital learning because of many things, but in terms of technology, their worries were surrounded by their devices being outdated and not being able to purchase newer products and their home wifi connections. This in itself shows the idea of the digital divide. While sending students home was the safest and healthiest choice, quickly students could fall behind on course work or be disconnected from students and professors.  Education became less accessible to students therefore creating a divide between students and their potential academic goals and pursuits. 

It seems to me that the largest driving factor for any kind of divide is centered around funding. This is seen both on a personal level- as mentioned with my example of undergraduate students, and at a higher funding level, as mentioned with the example of my own students. Personal devices can be difficult to secure, and buying mass amount of technology for schools is also expensive. If schools are not interested in investing in strong technology usage in schools, it is likely that groups of students will be unable to grow an understanding of technology. I see the same idea within students homes. " (Ella McCarthy, 2023).