Dive Brief:
- The Consortium for School Networking (CoSN) has released an online toolkit that provides resources and advice for districts looking to address the digital divide and increase equity for students who lack internet at home.
- The main three steps recommended are surveying district connectivity and device accessibility; engaging communities; and thinking about outside-of-the-box solutions, eSchoolNews reports.
- The toolkit also offers concrete resources on the homework gap and ways for districts to increase connectivity for students through outreach to local businesses, creating mesh networks, and maximizing the use of existing assets.
Dive Insight:
CoSN's release of the new toolkit comes at an important time, since the FCC is considering repurposing a $2 billion subsidy in order to better address the homework gap in March. Five million families have no Internet at home, and according to the FCC's Jessica Rosenworcel, 7 out of 10 teachers now assign homework that requires the internet at home.
Congress is also considering legislation to address the problem.
The Digital Learning Equity Act of 2015, co-sponsored by U.S. Reps. Peter Welch (D-VT) and David McKinley (R-WV), aims to quantify the digital divide between students of different socioeconomic classes and examine disparity in access to technology outside the classroom. It would also potentially fund programs to expand access.
