What is a Digital Divide?
According to a recent article on digital equity, the digital divide is defined as “the gap that exists between individuals who have access to modern information and communication technology and those who lack access” (Steele, 2019). There are many places where we can see that divide in our country. For example, a child is born in a low-income neighborhood, they will have less access to technology than a child who is not born in a low-income neighborhood. Without technology access, the child’s educational and career opportunities could suffer, proving that they are disadvantaged from birth, which is clearly unfair.
What Creates the Digital Divide?
Looking at a recent research article, the authors’ reveal how this divide is more than just a geographical issue, as high poverty schools are only 32.9% white, however, the low poverty schools are 66% white, meaning minorities are disproportionately represented in high poverty schools compared to low poverty schools. (Judge, Puckett, & Cabuk; 2014). With society’s reliance on technology, a person who is born into a situation where they do not have access to technology growing up will have a harder time finding and qualifying for a job as most jobs require computer literacy. These disadvantages we see from the digital divide emphasize why it is so important to try to close the divide so that everyone has an equal opportunity to succeed using technology.
How do we fight to stop the digital divide?
The term digital equity refers to the circumstances in which every person in a given society has access to the necessary technology needed for proper contribution to society. The key to ending the digital divide is aiming for digital equity. Digging deeper into the possibilities of how to promote digital equity, author Danica Radovanic explains in the article titled “Digital Divide and Social Media: Connectivity Doesn’t End the Digital Divide, Skills Do” how social media can create opportunities. One situation the author explained was in Moscow, where a group of people recruited members and organized meetings using Facebook to come up with plans to close the divide that separated the middle class and parliament (Radovanic, 2011). Raising awareness is only part of the answer, as we also need to provide opportunities for those who do not have technology access to express their situation, as teachers have no way of knowing what students have these issues (Gonzales, Calarco, & Lynch, 2018). Whether it’s raising awareness to those who can help, or creating outlets for those who need help to express their distress, it is clear that we need to start moving in the direction of complete digital equity.
