Participation and the Digital Divide

What is the digital divide?

The digital divide can be explained as:

“the gap between what we can afford or cannot afford regarding ICT and digital technologies” (Howell, 2012. p241).

“refer to the inequality in access to technology…” (Tustin, 2003-2018)

“the perceived gap between those who have access to the most recent technologies and those who do not” (Compaine, as cited in Centenio, 2017, p. 11)

The divide occurs in schools when some students have access to digital technologies such as the internet and devices at home, whereas other do not. This is largely due to socioeconomic status and other demographical differences (Tustin, 2003-2018) which could include age, race, ethnicity, gender, marital status, income, education, and employment status (Gathering Demographic Information from Surveys, n.d.). In Australia, around four in five households with children have internet access, meaning there are around 20% of children who do not (Pitman, 2012).

How does it affect teaching and learning?

The digital divide affects all students as it will determine the extent of involvement a child can partake in digital based learning activities, from both school and home. Due to the demographical differences mentioned previously (Gathering Demographic Information from Surveys, n.d.), a child may be restricted from accessing information valuable to their education.

For example, online articles used for research, or shared documents in web applications like Google Docs, are inaccessible to students without a wi-fi connection or device such as a laptop, mobile or tablet. Due to a lack of access for reasons beyond their control, a student’s grades would suffer as a result of the “digital divide”.

Teachers can discover how prevalent the digital divide is within their own classrooms in order to understand the learning needs of their students.

One way to do this as mentioned by Centenio (2017) is to do a private survey where students disclose their level of access to digital tools for learning, so teachers can be aware of those who may not have internet connections and tailor course work to suit as needed.

An effort needs to be made to bridge the digital divide that usually occurs due to a range of student demographics, and ensure access to digital resources for all students, as in this age of a digital world technologies are becoming incorporated into many aspects of education which could see some students left behind in their learning.

Chart outlines common technologies used in the classroom for assessing digital divide Source: (Tustin, R., 2003 – 2018)

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References

Bridging the Digital Divide in Education | Study.com. (n.d.). Retrieved June 6, 2020, from https://study.com/academy/lesson/bridging-the-digital-divide-in-education.html

Centeio, E. E. (2017). The Have and Have Nots: An Ever-present Digital Divide. Journal of Physical Education, Recreation & Dance, 88(6), 11–12. https://doi.org/10.1080/07303084.2017.1331643

Gathering Demographic Information from Surveys. (n.d.). SurveyMonkey. Retrieved June 7, 2020, from https://www.surveymonkey.com/mp/gathering-demographic-information-from-surveys/

Howell, J. (2012) Teaching with ICT: Digital Pedagogy for Collaboration and Creativity. Melbourne, Australia: Oxford University Press

Pitman, T. (2012). Online education: Can we bridge the digital divide? The Conversation. http://theconversation.com/online-education-can-we-bridge-the-digital-divide-9725