Schools Provide Access to Technology
by Linda Lambert
How many times have we heard the new millennium touted as the age of information and that access to this information is power and power leads to economic success in the age of the micro-chip? Certainly if access to information translates into the chance to earn a decent living and provides a gateway to political participation and power, we must adequately prepare our students to use and understand technology. It is also essential that we provide a level playing field for all students.
If we are to enhance computer skills for students, first we must insist to our school boards and legislators that we must provide adequate technological resources for our students. According to NEA Today, the National Education Association newspaper, in 1995, the latest year with complete statistics available, nearly 60 percent of computers purchased for schools were bought to replace machines already in classroom use, rather than to lower existing student-to-computer ratios.1
The schools also must provide technological access equally to all children. Results of a 1993 U.S. Census Bureau survey suggest that schools play an important role in giving children of all socioeconomic groups access to computers.
According to the 1993 Census Bureau figures surveying computer use, only 16.2 percent of children in families with income between $15,000 and $20,000 have a computer at home, whereas 37.5 percent of children in households with incomes between $35,000 and $50,000 have a computer at home. However, when one looks at computer use in school, 60.3 percent of the lower-income children use a computer at school, which is comparable to the 62.5 percent figure given for children whose families fall into the higher income category.
When one looks at computer use broken down by race, 35.8 percent of Whites, 13 percent of African-Americans, and 12.1 percent of Hispanics aged 3–17 have a computer at a home. However, if one considers the number of children enrolled in school who are using a computer, even though there are still inequities, the gap does narrow, with 62.7 percent of White children, 50.9 percent of Black children, and 52.7 of Hispanic children using a computer at school.2
Of course, children who do have a computer at home have an advantage over those who do not. To encourage parents to avail themselves of tools available to enhance the learning of their children, Indiana currently has a bill pending in the state Legislature that would offer a tax credit of up to $1500 to families unable to afford a tutor or even a home computer for their school age children.
The proposed legislation could benefit many students and their families, and is a step towards achieving economic justice with respect to technology. As educators, we have the responsibility for advocating for whatever measures are necessary to provide the best technological access for all of our students.
1 NEA Today, February 1998, page 11.
2 U.S. Census Bureau, Current Population Survey, October 1993.
Linda Lambert is the Midwest Regional Representative to
the AIUSA HR Educators’ Network Steering Committee.
