ERIC Number: ED617930
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 2021-Oct
Pages: 34
Abstractor: ERIC
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Achieving Digital Equity for California's Students
Hayes, Joseph; Gao, Niu
Public Policy Institute of California
As the COVID-19 pandemic has shown, digital connectivity is critical to student learning. Gaps in digital access--including reliable access to internet and a digital device--are a driving force in the educational inequities evident during distance learning. In this report, the authors use data on a sample of California households with children enrolled in school to examine changes in digital access and equity from spring 2020 to spring 2021. Key takeaways include: (1) device access rose dramatically early in the pandemic; (2) improvements in internet access were more modest; (3) progress stalled in spring 2021, and major equity gaps remain; (4) local innovations offer models for long-term solutions; (5) better data is needed to identify existing gaps in broadband access and allocate investments; and (6) affordability is a major concern. [For the Policy Brief, see ED617933. For the technical appendices, see ED617934.]
Descriptors: COVID-19, Pandemics, School Closing, Educational Technology, Technology Uses in Education, Access to Computers, Internet, Equal Education, Distance Education, Socioeconomic Status, Racial Differences, Educational Attainment, Low Income Groups, Metropolitan Areas, Geographic Regions, Ethnicity
Public Policy Institute of California. 500 Washington Street Suite 800, San Francisco, CA 94111. Tel: 415-291-4400; Fax: 415-291-4401; Web site: http://www.ppic.org
Publication Type: Reports - Research
Education Level: Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: Michelson 20MM Foundation
Authoring Institution: Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC)
Identifiers - Location: California; New York; Florida; Illinois; Texas
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A