Digital Divide

Amber Ricketts  Due October 8, 2009  Teac259‐Digital Divide 

Digital Divide Digital divide is referred to as the division between Internet accessible students at home and non-internet accessible students at home. This access differs due to economic standing, race, and geography. While some student’s families cannot afford the cost of Internet (or computer), there may also be students that do not live in areas where high-speed Internet can be accessed. There are many issues that come along with this digital divide. While those that are not able to access the internet “fall behind”, the more fortunate students that do have internet are getting more experienced on what their futures hold for them. “The digital divide framework is different now because inner-city kids need to be able to compete with suburban kids- and kids in Shanghai” (Jennifer Hoar, June 15, 2006). The world is so close to making us all together, you can easily just text someone across the country or be on video chat with someone in Japan. So anymore jobs are not just hiring people that live in their city, but they are hiring people across the world due to the accessibility of Internet and connecting to people around the world. The digital division is not just an issue for students but it is also an issue between teachers and parents. It seems to be a lot easier to get a hold of groups of people (ex: your students parents) when you are able to just send out a mass email containing important information. It is also easier to send emails to individual parents and will protect privacy and the case of someone over hearing phone conversations or lost papers. One last issue about this digital divide is most students do have Internet access at school, but teachers are not up to date on how you can use Internet or technology for their curriculum. Also some teachers believe it is to time consuming. “Learning through projects while equipped with technology tools allows students to be intellectually challenged while providing them with a realistic snapshot of what the modern office looks like” (Edutopia Staff, 3/16/2008). Teachers

Amber Ricketts  Due October 8, 2009  Teac259‐Digital Divide  need to realize that incorporating Internet into curriculum is crucial and really allows the students to explore their possibilities. The last problem with the Internet access in schools is the filtrations. Most schools filter: games that are perfect for a school setting and really nice or learning, social networks which are a great necessity for future. I expect that as I emerge into my teaching career I will run into this digital divide. Some of the challenges I may face are children not being able to work on projects that they did not finish in class at home. I once had a project that we had to make a short video about certain topics; thankfully somebody in my group had a video camera, because my family does not own one. These cases I will have to make sure to avoid having the students work on them at home. I should also supply them with these materials if capable when they need to work on them after school, with my supervision. I can also expect that this division will limit my access to parents/guardians that do not have Internet. They will be much harder to contact because of the lack of Internet. Parents may feel “left-out” and discouraged because their child could be the only student to not have Internet at home (which I am sure is not the case). As to how I will deal with these challenges is still up in the air. I will try and make sure everyone has Internet access at home, and if they do not, I will allow more time to work on the Internet and computers during school hours. The parent-teacher interaction could easily be worked out through telephone conversations; it will not be as convenient but can easily be done. I really do not know how else I can overcome these challenges and still allow the students to explore their Internet capabilities.

Amber Ricketts  Due October 8, 2009  Teac259‐Digital Divide  Resources: 1. Edutopia Staff (March 16, 2008) Why Integrate Technology into the Curriculum?: The Reasons are Many. There is a place for tech in every classroom. Retrieved from http://my.unl.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab=courses&url=/bin/common/course.pl?c ourse_id=_285275_1 2. Hoar, Jennifer (January 15, 2006) The Digital Divide 2.0: Competing involves more than computing. Welcome to the digital divide 2.0. Retrieved from http://my.unl.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab=courses&url=/bin/common/course.pl?c ourse_id=_285275_1 5. A definition of the digital divide and its current issues. 6. An explanation of the challenges you expect to face because of the digital divide and how you will deal with them 7. 2 or more sources cited both in text and in a reference list (APA style)