Kaitlin LaPlante

EDU 315

Writing Assignment #2

Digital Divide

The digital divide is the gap between technologically literate people and people that have access to internet and technology, and the people that are not as technologically savvy, with limited access to the internet and technology. The digital divide can be related to education for a number of reasons, in order for people to be successful in society in this generation and future generations to come, people need to be able to understand and use computers and technology. Schools are becoming more and more adaptive to technology, classes are using wikis, smart boards, and the teachers are conducting different lessons to help children stay engaged in technology and learning through the use of technology. The internet provides access to mounds of educational information and material and creates a learning environment for children and adults outside of the classroom as well as inside of the classroom.

The participation gap is the gap between the students that have unlimited access to the internet and the students that have very little or no access. The students that do not get to participate in opportunities to develop digital literacy are falling behind in the world because the world is becoming so dependent on technology. The participation gap can be related to education because there will be some students that have an overabundance of opportunities to use and develop the digital literacy skills and these students will have a lot of opportunity to be creative and make things through the use of technology. Then again, there will also be those students who have no access to the internet and very little opportunity to develop their digital literacy skills. While one side of the spectrum is becoming comfortable with the use of technology and soaring to new heights, the other side is falling behind, and schools and public libraries are some of the few places that these students lacking opportunity to gain literacy to the digital world can go to gain opportunity and that’s why it is becoming more and more important to implement the use of technology in your classroom.

The digital divide and the participation gap both cross in the fields of education and technology because they both are based off of the internet usage, the only real difference that the digital divide is in reference to those who have access to internet and those who do not, the participation gap is in reference to the amount of access that people are provided with. In the field of education there will be students in a class who have access to the internet outside of the classroom, but who have a slow internet connection…therefore making it harder for them to use the internet because it is so time consuming. Then there are the students who have access to high-speed internet in their bedroom, making accessing the internet for research and educational purposes easier. The use of the internet is only going to become more dominant in society, children are going to be exposed to the internet at young ages, and they will stay in tune to the digital world most likely for their entire lives, right up through college and straight into their career.

If I felt that there was a strong digital divide in my classroom community I would do everything in my power to keep my students updated with the technology that they do have access to in the school building. I would also provide parents and caregivers with information on the whereabouts of internet resources that are available to the public to use. I would implement the internet into my lesson plans and take up as much time in the computer lab as possible to try to get all of my students literate in the digital world. As the teacher I would also stay updated with the current trends of the digital world, so that my students will be able to experience the latest and greatest digital opportunities.

If I felt that there was a strong participation gap in the digital community I would try to allow the children with the least amount of access to the internet at home, the most amount of time on the computers in the classroom to help them with their school work and their research. I would also provide opportunities for the students that do have high-speed internet access at their homes to share with the class what they have found online at their house. They would also be able to share with their classmates the different techniques that they use when they conduct research at home online, so that even then the children that do not have the luxury of the access of internet in their home can learn from their peers’ experiences.

I believe that I fit in the digital divide as a person that has had access to the internet for a while, since I was in 3^rd grade; however I did not participate using the internet as an educational mean until I was in high school. I was on the lower side of the participation gap, the unfortunate thing was that I knew how to use the internet and I had access to it, but it was never incorporated in any of my school work until high school. However, I do not feel that my educational path was negatively affected nor do I feel as if it were positively affected. I know that this reflection will help me as a teacher to implement digital usage into my classroom. I now, more than ever definitely feel and understand the need to stay updated on the current trends of the digital world so that I can pass my technological knowledge down to my students and they can grow and become more and more literate to the digital world.