Leaders' Edge
Topic: Social, Legal, and Ethical Issues
The Didactic Divide
What kinds of technology experiences are offered to students at your school?
A variety of national studies show that schools are making progress toward closing the Digital Divide in terms of the ratio of students to computers. However, as physical access to equipment becomes less of an issue, new concerns are looming on the horizon.
In 2001, Kathleen Fulton formerly with OTA, observed, " The new Digital Divide is a didactic divide. Students from wealthy schools and poor schools often have different experiences with technology even when the hardware in disadvantaged schools is comparable to or better than wealthier counterparts."
Here are a few questions to ask yourself and your staff:
- How is technology used in our school to support instruction?
- Are students with special needs (i.e., Title I, English Language Learners, Special Education, Gifted and Talented) offered the same kinds of technology-based activities as mainstream students?
- Do differentiated activities offer equal access to ideas and information, or are they simply watered down lessons?
A benefit of technology use in a well-developed instructional program should be that it is used to make information more accessible to students with a variety of skills and abilities.
Submitted by:
Susan Brooks-Young
Next Tip:
Leadership and Vision
Leaders' Edge Coordinator: Susan Brooks-Young
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