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the gap between those who benefit the gap between those who benefit from digital technology and those from digital technology and those
who do notwho do notImage: johncorney, Flickr CC
What is it?
• Not really about access to digital technology but about the benefits derived from the access.
• Upper-to-middle classes have high-quality access to digital technology.
• Lower classes are at a major disadvantage without access to technology.
The have and have-nots
• Low-speed connections :– Are usually attained by
people who can not afford computers or have access to them
– Uses:– email– word process etc.
• High-Speed connections:
– Are usually attained by people who can afford computers or have access to them
– Uses: –Social networking –Blogging– Online learning through online audio and video services
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Causes of Divide• High Price of Technology (Computers)
• Broadband Connectivity
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Photo by Dominic Cambell (flickr)
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Who is falling behind?
"Our general finding is that there is no 'divide' between whitesand English-speaking Hispanics." "The gap has narrowed a bit for blacks compared with whites, but there is a continuing, persistent difference in Internet adoption between blacks and whites. The much bigger divides are between young and old and between the well-educated and less-well-educated.” http://www.pbs.org/mediashift/2007/01/your-guide-to-the-digital-divide017.html
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Image: aardbei2, Flickr CC
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Accessibility Concerns• In A Nation Online (2002), the National Telecommunications & Information
Administration (NTIA) declared the digital divide was closed.
Demographic DivideA 2006 survey by Pew
Internet Usage
80%
33%
0%10%20%30%40%50%60%70%80%90%
Ages 18-49 Ages 65+
Ages 18-49Ages 65+
72% 69%58%
0%20%40%60%80%
% of Individuals Using the Internet
Whites EnglishSpeakingHispanics
AfricanAmericans
Categories
Internet Usage
Internet Usage
59%
91%
0%10%20%30%40%50%60%70%80%90%
100%
High SchoolEducation
CollegeEducation
Internet Usage
Overall Findings:High Speed access leads to multimedia approach to using the Internet
Those without High Speed are left behind and use the Internet less
What would it take to switch to broadband?– This poll was taken by http://www.pewinternet.org using:
– 2,251 adults, age 18 and older • Interviewing dates: 04.08.08 – 05.11.08
– Based on those who have dial-up at home
% 35 The price has to come down/be more affordable/Cheaper
10 It would have to become available where I live
4 When my cable/telephone company offers it where I live
2 Someone else will pay for it
2 If it was free
0 When my children get older
11 Other
19 Nothing will convince me to get broadband
16 Don’t know
4 Refused to answer
Why is it a problem?
• According to Rasiej we will “leave behind a generation that is not able to participate in the 21st century global economy.”1
• Students with out access are:– falling behind in the development of digital literacy skills
(access, manipulation and evaluation of information)– Having less exposure to information
• The use of technology has become second nature for those with access– Students without access need to play catch up to learn the
technology together with the lesson.
1. Long, Mind the Gap
Distance Education
• Has the availability of technology-mediated distance learning increased participation in postsecondary education?
– In a series of case studies to evaluate the benefits and costs of distance education, evidence suggests that distance learning efforts can increase the number of people enrolling in postsecondary education (Jewett).
– Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute was surveyed, 75 percent of the
respondents indicated that that they would not have been able to participate in a course if it had not been delivered to their workplace. (http://nces.ed.gov/pubs2004/2004831.pdf)
Why should we care?
• Economic Equality:– Access to essential information such as career,
civic life, safety, social services
• Social Mobility:– Role of technology in learning and career.– Divide creates unfairness to those of low SES.
• Democracy:– Increased public participation
• Economic Growth:– Shortcut to economic growth in developing nations– IT = productivity– Competitive advantage
Software Designers
PROBLEM: The “80/20 factor”:80% of profit is made by serving the most affluent 20%.
• Only the affluent can access the expensive products
• Those that cannot afford the product are ignored-- NOT PROFITABLE
RESULTS: Even if the poor have access to digital technology, it is indented for the rich.
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Image: Steve Wampler, Flickr CC
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What can software designers do?
Create products that are universally accessible
Usable by as many people as possible
Ensure that underserved individuals and communities can accesseducation and tools-- ex. Lowering price of software
Create content that is:Gender neutralCulturally unbiasedIn many languages
Create options:Low and high bandwidthEasy to useText sizeAuditory & Visual cuesLanguage options
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The Participation GapThe latest version of the digital divide
• Gap between students with constant access to high-speed internet and those that don’t.– This leads to a gap in skills and competencies.
• Gap between what students can and cannot do with the amount of access– The public library or a school computer lab often place time limits on
how long they can work– Filters are placed to block certain sites
– Limits on what can be stored, downloaded, and uploaded.
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• According to PEW Research:– 30 million American households do not
have a computer (low-income/rural communities)
• Where can they get access?– School or library
% of students that rely on schools to use computers
39
45
11
15Hispanic
Black
Asian/PacificIslandersWhite
• Students have less opportunities to develop the digital literacy skills necessary for an increasingly technical world.– Students with access are able to be content
consumers and creators of content.– The more time they spend online, the more
comfort and experience is developed with the technology.
– Kids without access are living in the past.
• Their future will look different.– Innovators, increasingly integrate technology into
their lives.
Some popular solutions
What can Schools do?
• Cloud Computing:
– http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hplXnFUlPmg
• Cloud computing cons:– has been criticized for limiting the freedom of users – dependency on provider
• (I.e. IBM, Amazon, Google, Microsoft, or Yahoo)
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Web 2.0 to the rescue?• WEB 2.0 BENEFITS:
– Applications are web-based• Users create,save, and retrieve files online.
– Are not confined to any particular operating system or hardware.– The applications are usually FREE!!!
» http://www.go2web20.net
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Hurdles for Web 2.0
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