Bridging the Divide

The Digital Divide is the biggest obstacle teachers face when trying new innovative techniques in the classroom. The internet is a very powerful educational tool when used properly. There are countless, free online applications that have high educational value, but must be accessed using computers and the internet. Access to these applications is fairly common in this era, but it only takes a few breaks in the chain to prevent a teacher from utilizing these applications. If a small percentage of a class cannot complete an assignment at home, it will discourage that teacher from using the lesson because students shouldn't be excluded from a lesson.

Of course, there is no going around the fact that technology costs money. The cost of smartboards, projectors, computers, and software can really add up considering the volume a school would have to purchase. Education grants can solve this problem if your future school is having budget problems. Edutopia has a list of websites to get you started. An educator should not have to look for private funding for a school's technology. Proper education of students is a State and Federal issue. Therefore, there are options for struggling schools to get at least some technology in the classroom. The website also has a page on how to actively lobby for this cause. Teachers stay silent on many issues, yet we should be the loudest voices. You can access that here.

Bridging this "Digital Divide" can be difficult, but the best way to do it is through the school library or media center. This serves as the school's hub for technology, information, and learning. If a school lacks technology, convincing the school board to upgrade the media center would be an easy argument to win. A school cannot justify that it is fulfilling its commitment to education with an outdated media center. Doug Johnson of the Blue Skunk Blog has posted the following checklist for the 21st century library:

Information technology

• Does the library media center give its users access to recent information technologies such as:
  • computerized library catalog and circulation system for the building collection
  • access to a computerized union catalog of district holdings as well as access to the catalogs of public, academic and special libraries from which interlibrary loans can be made
  • full on-line access to the Internet
  • a wide variety of online reference tools like full text periodical indexes, encyclopedias, atlases, concordances, dictionaries, thesauruses, reader's advisors and almanacs
  • a wide variety of computerized productivity programs appropriate to student ability level such as word processors, multi-media and presentation programs, spreadsheets, databases, desktop publishing program, graphic creation programs, still and motion digital image editing software
  • access to collaborative learning/networking tools such as wikis, blogs and other online sharing programs and cloud computing resources such as online productivity tools and file storage?
  • production hardware such as multi-media computers, still and video digital cameras, scanners, and LCD projection devices.
  • educational television programming and services
  • access to desktop conferencing equipment and software
  • educational computer programs including practices, simulations and tutorials that support the curriculum

Part of the digital divide is knowing how to use the technology. More importantly, educating those who do not know how to use it can be a major obstacle. That is why having your school invest in a certified library media specialist would be sound. It is an important part of bridging the digital divide because teaching is more powerful than spending. Many families have this access at home. The media specialist can help fill in the gaps.

Ariel Sacks,teacher and author, encounters these gaps on a regular basis. She writes on her blog that some of the students' parents say they do not have the Internet at their home. Some people do not prioritize technology if they are on a strict budget. Even when she found a way around that obstacle, she was still faced with the school blocking the website she wanted to use for her lesson.

Another option is to advocate for the idea of the "One Computer, One Classroom". This concept can bring the Internet into the classroom because it is cost effective and practical. The Wired Classroom argues this idea. An important part is having the proper display in the classroom. Having a projector connected to a laptop is a fundamental part of the modern classroom because it allows the teacher to use the Internet as a presentation. It is an absolute bare minimum if using any web-based application because the class has to be able to model what the instructor does using application of choice.

At home, I feel that the digital divide will have to be bridged by parents. The Internet has become so important for the daily activity of many of us. I believe it will eventually spread to all Americans. Very soon, a family without the Internet will be like a family without a television to witness the first man on the moon. This cannot be funded by the school, so it will have to be bridged by organizations like the Community Technology Empowerment Project. These programs are not in every part of the U.S., so I urge you to talk to parents about the issue. If they do not have the Internet, try to convince them that it would be a sound investment and that it could greatly improve their lives.

Encountering the digital divide will frustrate many of us, but we cannot let it discourage us from using technology to enrich student learning. There are an abundance of free programs that are very useful to the modern educator, and they should not go to waste. We will have to be creative, but if we cannot bridge the digital divide ourselves, we may be able to find another route to get to the other side.

~MjG