Global Approaches to Narrow the Digital Divide in Schools
As developed and developing nations increase student access and availability of technology in the classroom, the next tier of the digital divide has emerged. Having met many material access goals, the time has come to address the Second Digital Divide in Education. This application phase involves the skills, usage and motivational access issues of both our low socio-economic students and their teachers. As noted by Hall (2006), our attitudes and applications of technology may, in fact, be accelerating the rate at which the digital divide is growing, rather than bridging the divide. Australia is a country that is leading the way globally to connect rural communities to technology, supply computers and wireless access to schools and bridging the educational and digital divide, especially for low socio-economic students.
Figure 1: Factors of Global Digital Divide
However, even with the implementation of ICT goals and initiatives, there are a variety of challenges and obstacles presented to schools, educators and students keeping the divide from closing. In Getting a Grip on the Gaps, Scherer (2010) notes that as the myriad of challenges, obstacles and limitations are addressed by both teachers and schools, there is a greater likelihood that issues such as equity, engagement, multi-literacies and normalisation of technology usage will become more ingrained in school culture, teacher pedagogy, classroom practice and student attitude.
Australian technological initiatives are providing a range of solutions to narrow the digital divide that exists, particularly for their indigineous and low socio-economic students. We would like to illustrate the variety of advances, the current state of implementation and future direction of the ICT Revolution. The justification for focusing on the Australian model is that it has been extensively implemented over the last seven years and shows insights into what programs have made a significant difference for student engagement and inclusion of minority and low-socio economic students into 21st Century learners.
Australian Initiatives and Strategies aimed at Addressing the Achievement Gap for Indigineous and Low Socio-Economic Students
Digital Education Revolution: The $2.1 billion campaign to provide technology access and devices to all Australian high school students.
Fair Go Project: A collaborative research initiative to raise student engagement in school and promote application of supportive teacher pedagogy.
Smarter Schools for Low SES School Communities: providing $1.5 billion over seven years (2008-09 to 2014-15) to support education reform activities in approximately 1,700 low socio-economic status schools around the country.
Students First: A government program to improve education outcomes through: Teacher quality, School autonomy, Engaging parents in education, and Strengthening the curriculum
Bright Spots: empowers school leaders to advance their work and builds a network of exceptional educators, so they can better serve their challenged communities with resources and leadership.
Growing Great Teachers: Showcases outstanding initiatives supporting early career teachers in low SES Australian schools.
Case Study: Digital Education: Revolution or Divide?
Australia’s Implementation of Technology to High Schools
(Click link above to read more on the case study)Findings from Australia’s Digital Education Revolution
Has the Digital Education Revolution initiative made a difference in bridging the digital divide? Lane (2012) contends that the initiative has:
1. Impelled schools to move forward from an Industrial Age model,into technology normalisation, where ICT is more seamlessly incorporated in classroom practice.
2. Provided the infrastructure, through robust cabling and individual devices, to lay the foundation for BYOD and beyond.
3. Aided in developing the mindset of schools and teachers to integrate technology into classroom practice and pedagogy.
Figure 2
Where to From Here?
Lee (2012) notes that control needs to continue to move into the hands of the educational experts at individual schools to address best practice, rather than trust that an ICT expert best understands the needs of the school, teachers and students.
This need for a more autonomous approach was echoed by The Gonski Review (2012) of Australia’s Digital Education Revolution, which made recommendations for a new funding model, known as the Schooling Resource Standard (SRS). This proposal aimed to give schools greater autonomy for UCT funding and initiatives, based on the needs of their individual school. In April, 2013, Prime Minister Julia Gillard made a public address to announce the SRS Initiative, which promised $14.5 billion toward increasing student achievement outcomes.
However, there is concern amongst educators and school administrators that without explicit funding and support for technology, schools will be faced with making critical funding choices of ICT resources at the expense of other budget necessities, in order to keep up with digital education. In many Australian schools, students are being required to provide their own device (BYOD), as federal funding stopping at the end of 2013 for supplying devices to students. The Gonski review also highlighted the concern that primary schools were excluded from the 1:1 computer initiative and left to sort out their own integration of technology. This oversight is what Lee (2012) termed a lost opportunity, as primary school creative and innovative use and implementation of ICT far exceeds secondary schools attempts at normalisation. I believe that the vast majority of secondary school teachers could learn a great deal from their primary school colleagues regarding ICT pedagogy and engagement.
As educators in New Zealand, there are valuable lessons to be learned from our Australian neighbours ICT experiences. By taking a critical look at what has been attempted, what has worked and what is the next step, we are able to see what policies initiatives and pedagogies have succeeded in closing both the digital and academic engagement divide for low socio-economic students.
For New Zealand, there are similar issues regarding engagement and lower academic achievement amongst our Maori/Pacifika students and students from lower socio economic homes. If New Zealand can adapt the lessons from the Australian Digital Revolution, and tailor them to fit our own educational needs and objectives, it is quite possible that effective and lasting change can be implemented more efficiently in New Zealand schools.
Figure 3: Bridging the Digital Divide for New Zealand students
