Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Reflection
Jenny M. Harrison
Reflection
As we live in a digital age, I feel we face many social, ethical and legal issues. One issue
is access. “As we enter the digital age, equipping students with technology is crucial” (Delgado,
Wardlow, McKnight, & O’Malley, 2015). “Technology provides many opportunities for large
numbers of people to access and use alternative forms of communication. But not everyone has
the ability to use or access the tools in the new digital society. Often these opportunities are only
available to a small group of students, even though the price of technology is rapidly dropping
and access to technology is greater than ever before. The disparity of who does and does not
have access to technology in America is widening. A 2003 report by the U.S. Department of
Education showed that only 41% percent of Blacks and Hispanics were using a computer in the
home compared to 77% percent of Whites” (Vigdor, Ladd, & Martinez, 2014). Teachers and
schools may not accommodate those students who do not have access to technology.
I believe there are ways of addressing these issues. First, we need to make sure that we
are aware that this could be a potential within any of our classrooms. It’s unfair to ask a student
to do something when he or she does not have the resources to complete the task. If I teach in an
area with a library nearby, I would provide the library information (library hours and computer
availability, etc.) to all my students. If there is a school technology lab, would it be possible to
open this lab outside of school hours or make it available during a study hall period? I think
teachers need to be open to these types of possibilities and find non-identifying ways of helping
these students have equal access. According to Scaling the Digital Divide: Home Computer
Technology and Student Achievement (2014), evidence indicates that differences in home
computers persist. As a remedy, some schools have implemented laptop programs where
REFLECTION 3
students can take computers home for school use. This may be another great option for providing
A study from The Journal of Research on Technology in Education “highlighted the need
for teachers of online courses to understand the cultural backgrounds of minority students, and to
use their knowledge to improve the learning experiences and academic self-concept of these
students” (Kumi–Yeboah., Dogbey, & Yuan, 2018). I believe it’s more important now than ever
for educators to be aware of the cultural differences within our schools. We need to get to know
References
Delgado, A. J., Wardlow, L., McKnight, K., & O’Malley, K. (2015). Educational Technology: A
Ribble, M., Bailey G., & Ross, T. (2004) Learning & Leading with Technology. International
Kumi–Yeboah, A., Dogbey, J., & Yuan, G. (2018). Exploring factors that promote online
learning experiences and academic self-concept of minority high school students. Journal
doi:10.1080/15391523.2017.1365669
Vigdor, J., Ladd, J., & Martinez, E. (2014). Scaling the Digital Divide: Home Computer
doi:10.1111/ecin.12089