The Situation in New Zealand
Globally, a large digital divide exists between developed and developing countries, not only in levels of accessibility, but also in the current state of the technologies to which people have access, and then that which they have access to is actually utilised (Cullen, 2001).
While it may seem obvious that a divide would exist between countries, what seems less easy to accept is that large divides exist within many countries too. Yet that is the case for many developed countries such as New Zealand where a large proportion of the population are arguably of a low-socioeconomic status and therefore at risk of sitting on the wrong side of the digital divide. At the turn of the century, evidence suggested a digital divide existed in New Zealand based on income, as well as education, location and ethnic group (Parker, 2003). While census data over the last decade or so has shown improvements in access to technology for low-socioeconomic groups in New Zealand (Statistics New Zealand, 2009; 2013) the magnitude and persistence of the divide is still causing much concern with regards to how these individuals are able to participate in society (Greenbrook-Held, J. S. & Morrison, P, 2011) with recent research indicating many New Zealanders are still on the wrong side of the digital divide (Gibson, Miller, Smith, Bell & Crothers, 2013).
Within developed countries such as New Zealand, the indigenous peoples are especially vulnerable to the effects of the digital divide, largely because they are often already disadvantaged in terms of education and income and therefore have a low uptake of ICTs (Cullen, 2001). The indigenous Maori and immigrant Pasifika populations have traditionally been largely excluded from the benefits of the digital revolution that other NZ ethnic groups enjoy (Cullen, 2001). However, when discussing factors causing the digital divide in New Zealand, it is important to avoid assuming that ethnicity causes poor access to technology. Although culture may be important in determining the uptake of technology for particular ethnic groups, the indicators most important for tackling the divide in New Zealand are low levels of income and education, two factors which are correlated with particular ethnic groups often concentrated in New Zealand’s rural populations. It is important that we do not get bogged down in issues of ethnicity but focus primarily on socioeconomic status because many other minority ethnic groups and a substantial number of New Zealand Europeans, concentrated in urban areas, are also of a low-socioeconomic status and overrepresented by the divide (Infometrics, 2001). Nevertheless, anyone attempting to address the digital divide must include ethnicity somewhere in the equation.
The Digital Divide in NZ Schools
While many NZ students from low-socioeconomic backgrounds are in schools which are actively reducing the digital divide, many are still in schools which are technologically poorly resourced in terms of physical access to ICTs. As well as having limited access to the hardware and software necessary to improve educational outcomes, many students are at risk of what some academics are terming a “second digital divide” (Jones, 2013) caused by teachers having a poor understanding of how to harness the potential of technology and use it effectively to improve educational outcomes.
The benefits of technology in the classroom can be many and varied including, but not limited to, providing benefits for those moving into IT related jobs. Perhaps more importantly though, technology in the classroom has been shown to benefit learners in ways less directly related to the subject of technology in the curriculum (Infometrics, 2001). Technology as an intervention has been shown to improve outcomes more effectively than other interventions (tutoring, increasing instruction time, or decreasing class size); it has impact in all subject areas, not directly influenced by technology; it has been particularly effective at raising achievement for low-achieving groups; it improves motivation; and it can assist teachers to help all learners for which they are responsible through a variety of techniques, many of which improve whanau engagement (McKinsey & Co, 1995).
Bridging the Divide
As identified by Gartner (2000), four barriers must be overcome to bridge the digital divide. They are:
- Physical access to ICTs
- Attitudes towards ICT
- The content to which people are exposed through ICTs
- ICT skills and support
In schools, reducing the barrier of physical access to ICTs involves increasing learner access to the necessary hardware and telecommunications infrastructure which allows them access to not only the basics of ICT, such as email and Internet search capabilities, but also those high-bandwidth online services which allow users to engage in media-rich experiences which define the web 2.0, such as online video streaming services and social media applications. Stakeholders involved in this must consider how the cost to acquire this technology will be managed. Numerous solutions for schools and students have been experimented with both in New Zealand and overseas, with procurement strategies in particular examples generating substantial purchasing advantages which have markedly reduced the cost to the end-user.
Although a crucial factor, getting technology into schools so that low-socioeconomic students can access the internet is not the battle won. Attitudes towards technology of those on the wrong side of the divide often include assumptions that technology is only for intelligent, middle-class individuals, with a considerably different culture to them (Cullen, 2001). Changing a community’s negative, erroneous attitudes towards ICTs is a critical challenge which must be overcome, and again numerous schools both here and abroad have developed strategies to achieve this end.
Once technology is in the hands of the learners and the community’s negative attitudes have been addressed, schools and teachers must ensure that the learners are being exposed to the right sorts of experiences through the technology to improve their educational outcomes. This often means rethinking and retraining to redefine what teaching and learning should look like for their learners -- no mean feat for any school to perform and one which requires patience, dedication and leadership. Many schools are attempting to find the right path to achieve this, and as the information in this website makes clear, New Zealand schools are leading the way in making this a reality.
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The case studies presented on this website illustrate the often novel approaches many schools have taken both at home and abroad to bridge the divide. The examples show that often grassroots initiatives are better suited to tackle the digital divide than large-scale changes in government policy alone. Nevertheless, government policy changes are needed, and recent reports produced with the support of New Zealand’s Ministry of Education are now directly addressing the need to tackle the digital divide and increase digital equity for this country’s students, referencing the seminal approaches by schools referred to on this website (21st Century Learning Reference Group, 2014).
