Digital Inequality Assignment

Team Alpha’a Digital Inequality Assignment turned out to be a beautiful professional looking presentation:

Our group collaborated well to bring this project together.  We started by organizing a google hangout to plan our project and discuss who would do what job.  We then used google docs and a shared google drive folder to put our presentation together.  Throughout the two weeks we stayed in close contact through email.  I found the collaboration process to be as much of a learning experience as our project topic.  This project has helped me to visualize what online collaborative learning can “look like” in my own future classrooms, and how to make learning more social even with students who are each at their own computers in separate parts of the world.

We addressed the problem of the digital divide and digital inequality in our presentation.  The digital divide is about access to technology while digital inequality is about know how when using technology.  Before doing this project I had not really thought about digital inequality; it seemed that giving access to computers was what was important to close the gap between haves and have nots.  But as soon as I read about digital inequality I saw the obvious issue that if a technology user does not know what the technology can be used for or have the skills to execute this higher level type of use then they are at a considerable disadvantage.  The people who fit into this group are forming a digital underclass in our society.  Giving them reliable access to computers and the internet is important, but it is also important to give them the know how to use them.

Most families at my school are from have reliable access to home computers and the internet.  Many students at my school have smart phones that are nicer than mine.  It is common practice to expect students to have internet access for homework and projects, and also to know how to navigate the web to be able to complete research.  In the course of this project I have realized that the small group of students at my school who make up our digital underclass are at more of a disadvantage than those who are at schools of lower socio economic status.  Teachers at low SES schools know that they need to give students time to work in computer labs and some guidance in how to use technology when assigning projects.  Students at my higher SES school do not get as much in school computer time since so many students have access at home; teachers just don’t think to include it in their class time.

This assignment addressed several AECT standards.  Standard 2.4, Integrated Technologies, relates to using several different forms of media in producing materials.  Our final presentation started as a google presentation document, then was moved to powerpoint to be narrated, and was ultimately presented as a youtube video.  Standard 3.2, Diffusion of Innovations,  3.4, Policies and Regulations, and Standard 4.2 Resource Management, related to our group’s planning of how to distribute money and resources to close the digital divide and reduce digital inequality.  We had a rich discussion as we planned our project on how we could use the computers that were already available to the public more efficiently, the development of computer courses, how to efficiently staff computer labs with IT interns and graduates of the computer courses, and how to measure the results of our program.

 

Introduction Video

The Introduce yourself video was a fun assignment that helped me to learn about using my computer’s webcam and publishing to youtube.  I had some bumps on the road in the process of getting my video made and then turned in in the correct format, but the lesson I am taking away is how important it is to give yourself plenty of time, and to be patient with yourself, when learning how to use new technology.

The Introduction Video is an example of the AECT Standard 2.4: Integrated Technologies; encompassing several forms of media under the control of the computer.  I used photo booth and imovie to create the video and then uploaded it to youtube.

I see myself using the skills I learned in this video in future courses I teach when I would want to do a more traditional lecture lesson.  If I were teaching an online Math or Physics course I could see posting short videos of me explaining examples that students could watch before working on similar practice problems.  I think the key to this approach would be to have the videos be short, so that students wouldn’t be tempted to skip ahead, and to make sure the examples are directly applicable to the following problems.