Low Bandwidth, Low Tech Learning

The National Digital Inclusion Alliance (NDIA) estimates 18 million U.S. households do not have access to broadband of any kind. That means there’s a good chance one or more of the learners in a SUNY Online course does not have broadband at home, making it difficult for them to fully engage in a course. Some learners face the additional challenge of underpowered devices, such as older laptops without enough speed to use recent software or stream videos.

Instructors and instructional designers can support learners in low- or no-bandwidth households or who use underpowered devices in three ways:

In the classroom, integrate low-tech, low-bandwidth alternatives into course resources and learning activities.
Provide resources for learners who may need access to low-cost broadband or devices.
Advocate for equity-minded technology policies at the institutional, state, and national levels.

LOW-TECH, LOW-BANDWIDTH TEACHING AND LEARNING

Flexibility is Key

Flexibility is the key to low-tech, low-bandwidth teaching. You don’t need to sacrifice more complex technologies altogether. Instead, consider using technologies that offer easy alternatives to the main platform. For example:

Virtual Office Hours: Video conferencing allows class participants to ask questions and receive answers immediately but can exclude learners without access to high bandwidth.

If using video conferencing for virtual office hours, consider also offering a text-based option. This could be a synchronous chat on a messaging platform like Slack or an offer to quickly reply to emails.

Videos and Pre-Recorded Lectures: Videos offer an engaging way to communicate content and connect with learners but streaming or downloading videos requires significant bandwidth or data use.

Including a transcript of the video offers a low-bandwidth alternative. (As a bonus, transcripts meet SUNYO’s accessibility requirements too!)

Audio/Video Discussions: Tools like Flipgrid and VoiceThread let learners hear and see each other during an online discussion, which is great for humanizing a course.

A collaborative doc or traditional LMS discussion, when structured creatively, likewise fosters dynamic exchanges among class participants but requires less bandwidth.

In general, technologies with text-only or text and image options require lower bandwidth. When possible, choose educational technologies that have a text/image option built in or have an intuitive equivalent.

Mobile-First Design

Smartphones are typically more affordable than laptops and data can be cheaper than broadband. While not all learners have a smartphone, building a course or program that is fully doable on a mobile device can expand the number of students with access to the technology necessary for an online learning environment.

Mobile-first design is characterized by:

Short, focused content
Layout, colors, images, etc. designed for a small screen
Responsive content that adapts screen size
Flexibility regarding where, when, and on what device a user accesses content

Some ways to practice mobile-first design include:

Provide concise content
Test websites on your phone or tablet
See how things work (or don’t) in the Blackboard app
Use the course information section or announcements to remind learners of available, relevant apps they might use to complete their course (Blackboard app, Google Docs, Outlook, etc.)

Focus On Attention Over Fancy Tech

Ultimately, learner success in a course is founded on positive interaction with instructors and each other – not the latest app, platform, or device. If offering a variety of technologies seems daunting, consider crafting a course that utilizes basic technologies like discussion boards, wikis, and email.

In a thoughtfully structured course, these low-tech, low-bandwidth tools can be used to facilitate rich interactions within the class community.

Connect Learners to Local Resources

Consider including an item in the Course Information highlighting local resources that address technology inequities. These might include:

Campus resources, such as a laptop loan program or discounted hotspots

Student discounts for mobile or internet plans in your area
A link to EveryoneOn, an organization that connects low-income households with low-cost broadband and/or device discounts
Direction to New York State’s Affordable Internet Options and the FCC’s Broadband Benefit site

Advocate for Equity-Minded Policies

Supporting learners in the classroom is a direct way to address technological inequities, but changes at the institutional, state, and national levels are necessary for closing the digital divide. If you have the time and energy to advocate for broader change, consider the following actions:

Read up on the causes of the current digital divide, including wealth disparities, racial inequalities, geography, and age.
Find out what your school is already doing to promote digital equity and suggest ways to expand this work – such as partnering with libraries and community centers, supporting local efforts to build broadband infrastructure, and adjusting tuition and fees to include the provision of a laptop or hotspot.
Lobby legislators to expand or preserve programs like the FCC’s Lifeline Support for Affordable Communities or New York’s Affordable Broadband Bill.

The solutions to the digital divide change as rapidly as the technology at the heart of the issue. For more ideas on how to be an advocate, see the National Digital Inclusion Alliance’s website and the resources listed below.

References

Bridging the Digital Divide, Lindsay McKenzie, Inside Higher Ed (February 2021).
Here’s How Colleges Should Help Close the Digital Divide in the COVID-Era, Mordecai I. Brownlee, EdSurge (July 2020).
Higher Education, Digital Divides, and a Balkanized Internet, Bryan Alexander, Educause (October 2017).
Low-bandwidth teaching advice, Digital Education Office, University of Bristol.
Low-Tech Teaching in a High-Tech World, Zoë Cohen, The Evolllution (March 2019).
Low-Tech Remote Teaching Solutions, Jennifer Sutcliffe, Emory’s Digital Matters (March 2020).
National Digital Inclusion Alliance (NDIA)
Videoconferencing Alternatives: How Low-Bandwidth Teaching Will Save Us All, Daniel Stanford, IDD Blog (March 2020).