As schools go more and more digital with systems, curriculum, assignments and more, they face the need to provide equity in digital access for their students. Student devices are part of it, but so is internet access at home.
This year has seen a huge increase in attention to "Digital Equity" or the "Digital Divide". Here are some great free resources from CoSN ( Consortium for School Networking ) that can help you understand the issue, and address it.
Digital Equity Action Toolkit
Students without home access to high quality broadband connectivity are at a disadvantage, unable to realize the full power of digital learning. Only 3 percent of teachers in high-poverty schools said that their students had the digital tools necessary to complete homework assignments, compared to 52 percent of teachers in more affluent schools, a discrepancy sometimes labeled the "homework gap."
To address this key challenge, CoSN launched the Digital Equity Action Agenda initiative. This effort highlights how some school districts are building meaningful community partnerships and creating tools to help district leaders get started in achieving digital equity.
Our new toolkit provides educational leaders with the information they need to address digital equity in out-of-school learning. As a member said:
"The CoSN Digital Equity Action Toolkit is the best and most practical document I have seen on this topic." --Devin Vodicka, Superintendent, Vista USD, California
Download the ToolKit here: http://www.cosn.org/digital-equity-action-toolkit-february-2016
Digital Equity Infographic (click to go to original PDF)
More resources
Digital Divide Resources
Digital Literacy Resources
Digital Equity Resources
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