Digital Divide Amongst School Districts

Digital Divide Amongst School Districts

I am extremely interested in the different ways that the digital divide can present itself, so in my research I came across this article. This article is interesting to me in that it shows a different side of technological disparity and presents viewpoints on the impacts of the digital gap.

Being that I am interested in global development, I commonly think of technological disparities existing between developing countries and developed countries. This article however, brings up a digital divide that can sometimes be over looked. That is the divide between regions of our own country and even school districts of our own region. The availability of technologies in financially disadvantaged schools is often less than that of wealthier school districts. As a result, a digital divide is created between school districts.

While there are many efforts to reduce the digital divide (Maine Learning Technology Initiative, New Technology Foundation, Enhancing Education Through Technology) there is still a major struggle in bring schools to a level playing field.  Financially many schools are unable to provide technologies for students that will provide them with the same opportunities and skills that other students are receiving in wealthier districts.

That being said, I thought this would be of interest to many of us who are going to be competing for job opportunities over the next couple of years. The technological advancements that have been made have helped us make many great strides, however without access to such technologies we could be put at a disadvantage when competing against other who have had more experience with them. As stated in the article, it is a concern that people will not be able to qualify for jobs without the necessary skills acquired through technological usage.

Let me know what you guys think of the article!

OLPC: A Feasible Program?

If I had to choose one word to describe the OLPC initiative in the developing world it would have to be overzealous.

The main reason why the United States and other developed countries have been able to take advantage of the spur of advancements in technology is not only because of their influences in effectively improving the efficiency of varying sectors relative to societal needs, but because we crave them. We are a consumer society obsessed with having the newest edition and most updated version of every knick and knack that proves useful or amusing to our every day lives. We desire the latest, the best, and the fastest, even if it doesn’t make sense to have either of the three. These attributes, which many people living in the developed world are the least bit of necessities, are what differentiate us from the developing world, and thus the lack success of ICT implementation. This case is especially true in the education where programs like OLPC, though a great idea on paper and in theory, are failing.

The article WILL CARIBBEAN ONE LAPTOP PER CHILD PROJECTS MAKE A DIFFERENCE? by Russell Williams describes the current situation with the implementation of OLPC in the Caribbean Islands. The result: like countless developers have observed before, a program cannot be efficient or effective if it is in an area that does not see it necessary. What makes programs thrive is the mutual benefit that the user and system both receive from the implementation. Successful programs are implemented because of the request of individuals or a community to have a program or resource made available to them. And it is that motivation that separates the useful products from the unproductive. According to Rogers, ICTs being handed out in the Caribbean where demand is low, resources (both financial and electrical) are scarce, and the purpose is far from understood is a waste of time and money. What’s worse is how in many areas the relative size of the program is too small to even impact the country on a minor scale, soiling the investment by taking money away from the educational programs that could instead be utilized in developing the infrastructure and teacher training of and in schools to more directly adhere to the problem.

In another development article about OLPC, OLPC in Peru: A Problematic Una Laptop Por Niño Program, Christopher Derndorfer writes, “Uruguay’s 400,000 XOs result in full saturation of the country’s public primary school system whereas Peru’s 300,000 only cover a small double-digit percentage of its primary school pupils” making the true execution of “one laptop per child” far from a reality.

Developers need to start readily examining the cultural and societal considerations necessary for this kind of program to not just be implemented but successful in the developing world. Otherwise, the objectives of these programs are put to question, and the question becomes: for whose benefit are these organizations really working?