The Digital Divide at Dale

Cassens Educational Complex

by James Flynn
EDTECH 501

What is the Digital Divide?

Digital Divide refers to the gap between those who can benefit
from digital technology and those who cannot (Smith, 2010)
digital divide refers to the gap between individuals,
households, businesses, and geographic areas at different socioeconomic levels with regard both to their opportunities to access
information and communication technologies (ICTs) and to their
use of the Internet for a wide variety of activities. (OECD, 2001)

The School

Dale Cassens is located in Fort Pierce, which is

on the east coast of Florida.

School Statistics
518 students enrolled
89% on free/reduced lunch
of the 518 students, 38% have a home computer with internet
access and 62% do not
of the 62% (321 students), 67% have a cell phone with internet
access and 33% do not
this equates to 106 students with NO internet access either through
a mobile device or computer

Why the Statistics Matter!

The National Education Technology Plan 2010 identifies five essential areas in their model of learning
powered by technology. The five areas are learning, assessment, teaching, infrastructure, and productivity.
These are the three, from that plan, that are important to my school:

Learning: Engage & Empower

Teaching: Prepare & Connect

Infrastructure: Access & Enable

Outside school, students are

free to pursue their passions in
their own way and at their own
pace. The opportunities are
limitless, borderless, and
instantaneous. (p. 8)

Connected teaching enables

our education system to provide
access to effective teaching and
learning resources where they
are not otherwise available and
more options for all learners.
(p. 10)

An infrastructure for learning

is always on, available to
students, educators, and
administrators regardless of
their location or the time of
day. (p. 11)

So Whats the Tie-IN?

Florida DOE now requires at least one course to be completed
through online learning
A Pew Internet & American Life Project report findings*:
Internet-savvy students rely on the internet to help them do
their homework - and for good reasons.
Internet-savvy students describe dozens of different
education-related uses for the internet.

* excerpted from The Digital Disconnect: The widening gap between Internet-savvy students and their schools.

Suggestion (Solution) to the Problem

PETT: Providing Empowerment Through Technology

Local business willing to donate old computers and hardware

On-site school refurbishing

Distribution of computers to identified students

Government grant written to provide 6 months of home internet access tying in to

increase of test scores based on student data

Internet provided by Comcast through a program related to the National School

Lunch program (free/reduced)- also provides training on setup - done at school site

References
Smith, C. (2010). Digital divide defined. Retrieved from http://www.digitaldivide.org/digitaldivide/digitaldividedefined/digitaldivide.html
OECD (2001). Understanding the digital divide. Paris: OECD. Retrieved November 7, 2013 from http:
//www.oecd.org/dataoecd/38/57/1888451.pdf
Arafeh, S., Levin, D., Rainie, L., Lenhart, A. The digital disconnect: the widening gap between internetsavvy students and their schools. Pew Internet & American Life Project, August 14, 2002. Retrieved
November 8, 2013 from http://www.pewinternet.org/Reports/2002/The-Digital-Disconnect-Thewidening-gap-between-Internetsavvy-students-and-their-schools.aspx

U.S. Department of Education/Office of Educational Technology. (2010). Transforming american

education: learning powered by technology. Washington, DC: Author. Retrieved November 4, 2013
from http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/opepd/ppss/reports.html.