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The Digital Divide Has Narrowed, But 12 Million Students Are Still Disconnected

Edsurge

In the months that followed, many states and school districts mobilized, using federal CARES Act funding, broadband discounts and partnerships with private companies to connect their students and enable online learning. As of December 2020, the number of students impacted by the digital divide has narrowed to 12 million. “In

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The affordability gap is the biggest part of the digital divide

The Hechinger Report

Most of these households, he said, “have infrastructure available at their home but they just can’t afford to sign up for a broadband service.” Only a third of those without broadband access blame a lack of infrastructure; the remaining two thirds without access say they can’t afford it, Marwell said.

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How one city closed the digital divide for nearly all its students

The Hechinger Report

We have this huge digital divide that’s making it hard for [students] to get their education,” she said. David Silver, the director of education for the mayor’s office, said people talked about the digital divide, but there had never been enough energy to tackle it. Credit: Javeria Salman/ The Hechinger Report. “We

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Racial segregation is one reason some families have internet access and others don’t, new research finds

The Hechinger Report

Since before the pandemic, Benjamin Skinner has been researching broadband access and how lack of home internet impacts students’ ability to do online work. What no one talks enough about is that “we have a digital divide right within suburban and urban areas as well,” he said.

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OPINION: How targeted federal action could finally chip away at the broadband racism faced by Black students

The Hechinger Report

Pandemic-era lockdowns put an unmistakable spotlight on digital equity — particularly for K-12 students. But nowhere is the digital divide larger than in the Black rural South. billion for a $30-per-month broadband subsidy for low-income Americans, and we stand to make gains in both access and affordability.

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Millions of Students Are Still Without WiFi and Tech—Why Haven’t Policymakers Stepped Up?

Edsurge

It’s time for states to step up and realize that proper technology and WiFi connectivity are a must-have in public school districts, and that state policy is dangerously lagging behind. COVID-19 shed light on the huge gap in policy relating to tech and infrastructure provisioning—what many are now referring to as a civil rights issue.

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A school district is building a DIY broadband network

The Hechinger Report

But Bredder can’t give students the tool he considers most indispensable to 21st-century learningbroadband internet beyond school walls. If some kids can go home and learn, discover and backfill information, while other kids’ learning stops at school, that’s a huge problem.”. This is an equity issue,” said Bredder. “If