Digital Inequality In The Land of Equality

http://www.awaken.com/2011/12/bridging-the-digital-divide-with-online-education/

What is a digital divide?

Essentially, the difference between those who have access and the skills to effectively use technology. (Howard, 2010)

What is a digital inequality?

Norris, P. (2001) Digital divid: Civic engagement, information poverty, and the Internet world-wide. New York, NY: Cmabridge University Press.

This is the evolution of the digital divide. Differences in use and comfort in technology, not just access. There are inequities across groups and regions.

Digital Inequalities Lead to Social Inequality

DiMaggio and Bonikowski (2008) found that nonusers sometimes get lower wages than regular users of technology. Lack of connection also removes individuals from the online global economy. (Howard, et al, 2010)

DiMaggio, P. & Bonikowski, P. (2008). Make Money Surfing the Web? The Impact of Internet Use on the Earnings of U.S. Workers. American Sociological Review, 73. 227250.

Affordable Broadband Access

"Broadband is the great infrastructure challenge of the early 21st Century" (Obama, 2010)

Affordability Reform Innovation Investment

Broadband: Foundation
"Like electricity a century ago, broadband is a foundation for economic growth, job creation, global competitiveness and a better way of life...." (ITU, 2012)

http://www.google.com/search?q=digital+divide+and+graphs&hl=en&tbo=u&t

Factors of Digital Inequality

Norris, P. (2001) Digital divid: Civic engagement, information poverty, and the Internet world-wide. New York, NY: Cmabridge University Press.

Factors For Better Tech: Use

Studies of how people use technology all say the better education a user and their parents received, the more comfort they show in technology use.

Inequality: Access and Use

Bridging the Divide

Our task is to evaluate proposals on how to spend $50 Million on bridging the gap in access and use of technology in a state.

Key Ideas For Consideration

Each of the following proposals were assessed in terms of the Key Ideas of the National Education Technology Plan (NETP)

learning assessment teaching infrastructure productivity

Where Are There Fewer Hours? Open The Library Longer

Extended Library hours from 3:00 p.m. until 7:00p.m. Provide six staff members for supervision. $109, 440 - Total annual cost per library.

If You Build Them, They Will Come

Twenty computers in each library. Suggested PC Model: Dell Optiplex 9010 All In One With Windows 8 ($1, 757.57). Total PC Cost Per Library: $35,151.40. Suggested Printer Model: Dell 3330dn Laser printer with 2-year Warranty ($639.99). Three Printers Per Library: $1919.97

The Red Carpet Treatment

Use same staffing schematic of six district

employees per library Open library for 12 hours per day. Total cost for one summer: $437,760 Determine means to provide Internet to students

If You Provide It, They Will Learn

Provide students with iPads instead of computers. IPad $399 with $99 warranty = $498 compared to Basic Dell Inspirion at $599. Laptops are less stable, are expensive to repair and break down easily

Option 4: Statewide Broadband Access

Choices!

High speed access for everyone

Urban/Suburban areas: Satellite, WiMAX, DSL, Cable Moderate to high income rural areas: Satellite

Low income areas: Spread spectrum WiFi L

Option 5: Subsidizing internet

Digital Literacy Already subsidize d

Online classes

Libraries unavaila ble

Ways to subsi ISPs

dize

1) Subsidize companies that provide internet service to areas with high cost per telephone line 2) Subsidize basic internet service for those of low income 3) Provide wireless internet access through spread spectrum technology 4) Subsidize data plans for phones

The need for digital literacy

Solutions

Library classes Boys and girls clubs Programs in low education counties After-school programs

Alternatives: subsidize low cost laptops

http://blog.nexenta.com/blog/bid/221709/FCC-Chairmanand-Connect2Compete-appear-at-Nexenta-Event

Option 7: Develop Free Content

Develop free online educational content, giving first priority to content most relevant to lower socio-economic groups before content that is relevant to the rest of the public.
img source- http://blog.monitor.us/2012/07/content-management-systems/

Giving Knowledge for Free

The Emergence of Open Educational Resources (publication by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, & the Center of Educational Research and Innovation

According to the 2007 OECD & CERI report, creation and disbursement of content is a critical component of overall development.

http://www.oecd.org/

Giving Knowledge for Free

The Emergence of Open Educational Resources (publication by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, & the Center of Educational Research and Innovation " There is also a need to increase access to and the usefulness of existing resources. Various ways of improving access and usefulness have been introduced. One seeks to make it easier for users to find relevant resources of good quality, particularly those that travel well, by using different quality management processes and metadata to facilitate the search for resources. A second is to find ways to increase access for groups that so far have limited or no access to these resources..." ( http://www.oecd.org/edu/ceri/38654317.pdf)

http://www.oecd.org/

Option 7: Pros

content design can be targeted at being useful to those most in need of access content can be created with the specific local and regional interests in mind various community needs could be addressed

Option 7: Cons

developing content is a complex and subjective enterprise value for the dollar spent is hard to assess presents opportunity for divisiveness there are already a wealth of online and offline resources available to the public many existing educational programs are underfunded

Final Recommendations
Purchase computers for public libraries across the state Open public schools for longer hours, with staff and resources for public technology use Provide computers to the Disadvantaged Provide High-Speed Internet for all Subsidize ISP Costs for state residents Provide Information Literacy courses Provide free online educational content, with focus on lower socio-economic users

Alternative: Subsidize smartphones for use as mobile hot-spots

References

ITU Measuring the Information Society. (n.d.). Retrieved November 3, 2012, from http://www.itu.int/ITU-D/ict/publications/idi/index.html (slide 4)
Howard, P. N., Busch, L., & Sheets, P. (2010). Comparing digital divides: Internet access and social inequality in Canada and the United States. Canadian Journal of Communication, 35(1). Retrieved from http://cjc-online.ca/index.php/journal/article/viewArticle/2192Hargittai, E. (2010). Digital Na(t)ives? Variation in Internet Skills and Uses among Members of the Net Generation. Sociological Inquiry, 80(1), 92113. doi:10.1111/j.1475-682X.2009.00317.x

Measuring the Information Society. (n.d.). Retrieved November 3, 2012, from http://www.itu.int/ITUD/ict/publications/idi/index.html (slide 5) PBS Teachers . learning.now | PBS. (n.d.). Retrieved November 10, 2012, from http://www.pbs.org/teachers/learning.now/ (slide 3) U.S. Department of Commerce. 2011. Digital Nation. Washington, DC: National Telecommunications and Information Administration. Retrieved November 10, 2012, from http://www.ntia.doc.gov/files/ntia/publications/ntia_internet_use_report_february_2011.pdf (slide 30) U.S. Department of Education Releases Finalized National Education Technology Plan | U.S. Department of Education. (n.d.). Retrieved November 10, 2012, from https://www.ed.gov/news/press-releases/us-department-education-releases-finalized-national-education-technology-plan.