Yes!+The+DD+is+relevant+to+teaching+today.

**Is the digital divide a relevant issue for teachers today?** //presented by Heather//

//  **Well…I guess that all depends…** //  Are you accessing computers WHENEVER you need to with your classes? Are you able to access whatever internet site you wish to visit without “blocks”? Do you know rural teachers that struggle with poor internet connections in their efforts to integrate technology into their students learning experience? Do you have teachers in your school that are reluctant to integrate technology into their programs due to lack of knowledge, training or even the motivation to learn about it? Do you know teachers that HAVE the technology available to them but simply use it to mask their old teaching styles (ie.using an LCD projector/Smartboard as a glorified whiteboard/overhead)? Do you feel your school/teachers should be doing more in the way of ICT education to prepare its students for the technologically infused future that awaits them; but there are barriers standing in its way? If you answered yes to at least ONE of these questions then the answer is “YES”. The digital divide is very real and very much a relevant issue for teachers today as we try to prepare our students for their future in the information age! <span style="font-size: 120%; color: #af0e0e; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS', cursive;"> <span style="font-size: 120%; color: #af0e0e; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS', cursive;"> **A little background knowledge for you…** <span style="font-size: 130%; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS', cursive;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif;">The digital divide is not a new label in technological or political fields. It first came into the public eye during several speeches given by President Bill Clinton in the mid 1990’s addressing inequities in access during the ‘technological revolution’. It began a series of initiatives in the United States and abroad to level the playing field for everyone by providing computers and access to the masses. Over the past 10 years, it seems that the hype surrounding the issue of the digital divide has started to fade particularly as computers, the internet, cell phones and digital cameras have rapidly made their way into almost every home in North America. However as Andy Carvin puts it in his blog post, <span style="font-size: 130%; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS', cursive;">[|The Gap] <span style="font-size: 130%; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS', cursive;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif;">, “ With the proliferation of the Internet and so many people online today, you might assume that the problem has dissipated. But the reality is far more complex than that.” Here's a little more insight into "The Digital Divide" in education...

media type="youtube" key="_ExQrzH8Ers" height="344" width="425" How is the digital divide a relevant issue for teachers today if so many schools are finally getting the technology they’ve been asking for and [|E-rate programs] or [|deals with big computer companies like Dell], are made available for those who can’t afford them? Is access really the issue? <span style="font-size: 120%; color: #b51212; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS', cursive;"> Let’s look more closely at those questions that were posed at the beginning of this “conversation” to identify the digital divide that truly exists for teachers today: **Do you know rural teachers that struggle with poor internet connections?** Here in Canada, the findings of [|“The Digital Divide in Canadian Schools: factors affecting student access to and use of information technology”] research paper (2003) summarizes that “there **//are//** differences in the ways in which Canadian youth access ICT. Gender, rural-urban location and parental education all seem to affect patterns of use and attitudes to ICT.” The largest difference was with those in rural areas who do not have quality internet connections. “As more and more resources become available via the Internet, these discrepancies, if not countered, will have serious implications for the divisions among youth in terms of their access to the presumed benefits of the information society.” Having stated that, the research paper does go on to state that “the heavy investments made into providing computers in the schools has exposed most if not all Canadian youth to ICT.” So if students are not suffering due to physical issue, what is the divide? In an article entitled, [|“The Rages over the Digital Debate]”, David Warlick is quoted as saying, "I know very poor and rural school districts…that are light years ahead of some of the wealthy urban districts. This has happened because the leadership has recognized the value of technology both with regards to students learning to use these tools to become more effective workers and more empowered and fulfilled citizens in the future and because students can learn in very powerful ways when using technology within creative and well crafted learning experiences." **  Many schools have some of the best technology equipment and computer access available, yet if they don’t have the staff, who are willing to make the effort to learn about it and understand the needs of the 21st century learner, than a digital divide exists for our students’ access to the education they require for their future. Many of you may have read a[|recent posting by Joyce Valenza entitled “A Visit to Remember]”. It was about a group of high school students who were visiting her library because they were getting a new teacher-librarian and were reinventing their old school library. The tour she provided was an experience they would never forget and a revelation about what they had been missing out on. They **//had//** internet access and technology resources but did not have the knowledge from their teachers or previous librarian on how to access the information. The Divide had been created for them because of the inexperience and ignorance of their teachers not to inform them of the resources that were right at their fingertips. **  This is a frustrating set of circumstances in my school, as Smartboards are being installed in classrooms based on grade level, rather than being placed in classrooms with teachers who have a desire and passion to use them for their intended purpose. I frequently pass by my colleagues’ classrooms to see their Smartboards RARELY being used, to those colleagues who merely use it as a screen for their LCD projector or to share the day’s agenda. ARGHHHH! Where is MY Smartboard? I read a [|recent post by Wesley Freyer] in which he was reviewing a “Harry Potter” type activwand that was to be used with the interactive whiteboard. As much as he contended that it was “cool”, he raised a valid question: “ Is it pedagogically desirable and fiscally responsible for school administrators to spend money on technologies like Activwands which predominantly reinforce traditional models of teacher-directed instruction? The 21st century is here, including an exponentially growing array of [|digital curriculum] and [|web apps]. We need to empower learners inside and outside of schools with tools (i.e. laptops) which permit them to fully participate as netizens in the 21st century.” Teachers that use the technology they have as new toys to deliver their old curriculum and dated lesson plans are creating a digital divide for their students to experience these tools to their fullest potential! **Are you accessing the computers/technology WHENEVER you need it to enhance or implement your ICT curriculum outcomes?** For those of us working in urban school settings, this isn’t the main concern as our access to “high-speed” internet is becoming more prevalent. The “access” issue for many teachers is the ability to get our classes “booked” in to that computer lab more than once a week OR when we do get there, the number of computers we find that aren’t working! In Manitoba, we have been “attempting” to implement our [|Literacy with ICT continuum]into our schools…with a few hurdles! For those teachers who are trying to embrace this fabulous resource and tool to enhance their students learning experiences, they are struggling with the issue of TIME to meet these outcomes with the limited access they have to their computer facilities.
 * Do you have teachers in your school that are reluctant to integrate technology into their programs due to lack of knowledge, training or even the motivation to learn about it?
 * Do you know teachers that HAVE the technology available to them but simply use it to mask their old teaching styles (ie.using an LCD projector/Smartboard as a glorified whiteboard/overhead)?

**Are you able to access whatever internet site/Web 2.0 tool you wish to visit without “blocks” and overzealous filtering?** The issue of (what I like to call) “overfiltering” has been made abundantly clear from a recent discussions. With overzealous IT directors, administrators and government decisions, the ability to filter the internet without consulting “informed-educators” has created a ‘digital divide’ for our students. They are unable to access the global community, make connections, collaborate across distances, obtain information, develop social networks and expand their creativity using the latest technologies in the Web 2.0 environment. As [|Esther Rosenfeld (co-editor of TeacherLibrarian journal)] states, “We now have a new digital divide-between, on one side, students and teachers who have access to the tools of 21st-century learning and, on the other, those who have that access blocked. Too many schools prevent students from using the tools that these same students use outside school-tools that can engage and excite them to meaningful learning.” Filtering cannot be overlooked as another digital divide for our students to conquer. **Final thoughts…** The [|AASL blog post, “Web 2.0 in Schools: Our Digital Divides are Showing!”] described the digital divide as having “four levels of influence”: ACCESS, SKILL, POLICY and MOTIVATION. These four “influences” have reared their ugly head throughout our conversation on today’s digital divide. The diagram below taken from the AASL post, shows how they are all somewhat intertwined and in effect, a consequence of each other. It is our duty as educators and advocates for today’s 21st century learners, to help our students bridge these “digital divides” so they are given every opportunity they deserve in this online, digital world; “students who don't have access to today's computer technology will have a hard time catching up in tomorrow's technological job market.” ( [|Sherril Steele-Carlin, “Caught in the Digital Divide] ”) <span style="font-size: 120%; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS', cursive;">//Wouldn’t you like to be answering NO instead of YES to this question:// <span style="font-size: 120%; color: #9f0909; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS', cursive;"><span style="color: #a90a0a; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS', cursive;"> <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS', cursive;"><span style="font-size: 140%; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS', cursive;">Do you feel your school/teachers could be doing more in the way of ICT education to prepare their <span style="font-size: 140%; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS', cursive;">students for the technologically infused <span style="font-size: 140%; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS', cursive;">future that awaits them? <span style="font-size: 140%; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS', cursive;">

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