Digital divide is the gap between those who have access to technology and internet connection and those who don't. Those who don't have access to these tools and resources are at a great disadvantage because of the wealth of knowledge and opportunity provided by said tools and resources. This is a problem faced by people all over the world, not just those in developing and less developed countries.

Digital inequality happens when technology or internet access is available in the area but something prevents in from being accessed by some or it is greatly restricted. These factors may include government restrictions, ease of access, and especially cost. Millions of people in the United States are faced with this challenge today.

At my school we are faced with issues dealing with the digital divide and digital inequality. We have solved some of the issues but there are still more that need to be addressed to help our students and their families have better access to digital resources.

A survey to district families showed that many students did not have access or had limited access to a computer with word processing and presentation software at home. This made it difficult for teachers to assign projects or assignments on the computer. The school had two computer labs containing between 20 and 30 computers for a student population of over 400. The district needed to come up with a solution to meet the digital needs of our students.

The solution to our hardware access problem was the Chromebook. While it is not the perfect solution, these devices allow our students access to a computer at school and at home for them to complete assignments, do research, and enrich their learning process. The district used grant money, technology fees, and money raised from a "Tech Trot" 5k to provide each student with a Chromebook of their own. The technology fee took the place of the textbook fee at registration for the school year to lessen the impact on families in our district.

Using the same survey we found that many families in the district did not have reliable internet access at home. Many others responded that they only had internet access via a mobile phone. This becomes an issue when the Chromebook provided to each student requires the internet to run the vast majority of applications, including the Google Drive. In my class we use an online textbook so those students without internet access at home are at a supreme disadvantage in my class as well as others.

This is a great concern for me, many of my fellow teachers, and the administration at my school. The students without internet access are unable to access the wealth of resources provided to them by their teachers and are therefor at a disadvantage. The district has been in contact with Comcast about providing our low income families with incredibly low cost internet access (about $6 a month). This would allow for most of our students who don't have home internet access now the opportunity to get this service. Another way to help is to provide time before and after school for students without internet access to use the school's internet. I invite those students in my classes that have no home internet to come in before school or stay after school if they need to access the internet. Students who ride the bus get to school about 30 minutes before school starts and we offer an activity bus for after school activities that these students can use. We also have a high rate of students that walk to school so for them this is not a problem.

This is an issue at my school that would seem to be the easiest to fix but is proving to be difficult. My school has a large number of very experienced teachers who like to do things a certain way. They don't want to change what they have been doing because it works. There are many teachers who are resistant to the new technology that is present in our district and have no use for it. Others just don't know how to use the technology or how to integrate it into the classroom effectively.

A great way to fix this is to offer more professional development to help teachers uncomfortable with the technology become more comfortable. These can be led in house by the tech department or teachers who are using the technology in their classrooms. This could help teachers by providing some instruction on how to use the technology but also provide them with ways to integrate it into their classroom. There could be broad and subject specific training that could be done to help improve the digital literacy of the staff and utilize the technology to help students learn more effectively.

Reducing and eventually eliminating the digital divide and digital inequality is important for providing all people with equal opportunities to succeed. While the digital divide still exists, many people are at a disadvantage. We take this for granted because we have anything we could possibly need right at our fingertips but millions of people in this country and more around the world do not. When we restrict access to technology and internet access we risk creating even bigger divides between people. The AECT Code of Ethics charges us with providing technology and opportunity for all of our students but the digital divide strains this. Section 1.3 tells us that we need to guarantee to each individual the opportunity to participate in any program. The digital divide makes this difficult to do so.