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Equitable Access

If students only have access to technology one day a week, we cannot expect them to become proficient users and applicators of technology, says sanjay gupta. Recent studies have shown that the use of technology varies by race, socio-economic status and gender as well. Technology has proven to enhance the educational atmosphere and engage student's significantly more than prior teaching practices, he says.

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44 views3 pages

Equitable Access

If students only have access to technology one day a week, we cannot expect them to become proficient users and applicators of technology, says sanjay gupta. Recent studies have shown that the use of technology varies by race, socio-economic status and gender as well. Technology has proven to enhance the educational atmosphere and engage student's significantly more than prior teaching practices, he says.

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Module 13

Equitable access to technology is a key factor if we want our students to become


proficient users and applicators of technology. If students only have access to technology one
day a week, we cannot expect them to become proficient in using such devices. Students must
have access to technology devices at all times as well as be taught how to use them through
modeling, exploration and direct instruction.
While the students are living in a digital age, we cannot assume that they have access to
such technology at home. Recent studies have shown that the use of technology varies by race,
socio-economic status and gender as well. It was surprising to me that the children living in a
higher-income household or with parents that are more highly educated actually use technology
devices less frequently than children in a lower-income family or with parents that are less
educated. I automatically assumed that children that come from wealthier families, and therefore
probably have more access to technology, would be using it more often. The statistics were
substantially different between the two. For example, only 20% of children in a higher income
family have a television in their room versus 64% of children in a lower income family.
After reading the articles, it does make sense that more educated/higher income parents
are more interested in their children being well rounded and spending time doing a variety of
activities such as extracurricular activities, going to the library and spending time with one
another. While parents that are less educated and therefore probably having to work longer hours
or less desirable hours, allow their children to use technology more often because the parents do
not have the time or the money to spend on their children doing other things.

These statistics make it more evident and critical for teachers to be incorporating the use
of technology into the classroom. While some students may use technology devices quiet often
and others not so often, the probability of them actually using the device for educational
purposes is very slim. Students use the technology for entertainment and often have no idea that
it can be used to gain knowledge, information and educational purposes. Technology has proven
to enhance the educational atmosphere and engage students significantly more than prior
teaching practices. However, such teaching practices require intentional planning, intentional
teaching and intentional learning for both the educator and the learner. Teachers who promote
meaningful, engaged learning through authentic uses of technology are providing students with
opportunities to interact with a wealth of resources, materials, and data sets.
Another important factor to be considered for insuring equitable access to technology is
the school/districts connectivity/infrastructure, appropriate funding, and ongoing professional
development to ensure that the faculty and staff are current and up-to-date on using technology
and implementing it effectively in the classroom. The connectivity and infrastructure play a very
important role in this measure. If the infrastructure is not appropriate for the type of computers
and software that is being accessed in the school then the system will not work properly. This can
cause major problems with not only teaching and learning but with the logistics of the school
each day such as attendance, parent emails, and planning. Funding is also a very important
factor. Schools should enlist community support for this measure. Our school district participates
in fundraising, community assistance as well as our local city tax revenue to support technology
funding in our school system. We have a very small school system that consists of only four
schools so therefore the need for funding is exponentially less than it would be for some our
neighboring districts. We are very fortunate that we are an Apple school district. My particular

school has provided each student in grades fourth through fifth with an iPad to use at school. In
second and third grade five classrooms share thirty iPad minis so therefore each class gets six to
house in their room. We also have access to three MacBook carts that can be checked out and
brought to the classroom for student use. I feel so fortunate to work in a school district that
understands the importance of educational technology use and provides the necessary devices for
our students and teachers. The last thing that is essential to equitable access is professional
development. If teachers are not provided with appropriate strategies for implementing the use of
technology within the classroom then it is absurd to thing that they will allow their students to
use it within their classrooms. I personally do not implement new strategies and tools in my
classroom if I am not comfortable with it myself. Especially if the population of the staff is
heterogeneous, for example younger teachers fresh out of college are going to be more
comfortable with the use of technology in the classroom than teachers that have been teaching
for twenty years. Therefore it is essential to provide all teachers with the opportunity to learn and
develop strategies and teaching practices for the implementation and use of technology in their
classrooms.
Technology integration in the classroom can provide students with a quality and
meaningful education. However without equitable access, we cannot expect students and
teachers to properly glean the positive outcomes that technology integration can have on the
learning and educational process. Todays teachers have access to the tools necessary to take all
learners to a new level of learning through technology use.

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