Technology and equity

[Unkotare]

With all of this remote learning, it has become more and more apparent that there is a real distinction between students who have had the opportunity to use technology we take for granted all their lives and those who have not. Some students are very familiar with working on the computer and have a great facility for accessing technology and software and various platforms. Others however, do not. This results in a very wideGap in the ability of various students to learn well remotely.

 

[Moonglow]

With all of this remote learning, it has become more and more apparent that there is a real distinction between students who have had the opportunity to use technology we take for granted all their lives and those who have not. Some students are very familiar with working on the computer and have a great facility for accessing technology and software and various platforms. Others however, do not. This results in a very wideGap in the ability of various students to learn well remotely.

It is the same for those in classrooms and the hands on craft of manipulating knowledge.

 

[theHawk]

With all of this remote learning, it has become more and more apparent that there is a real distinction between students who have had the opportunity to use technology we take for granted all their lives and those who have not. Some students are very familiar with working on the computer and have a great facility for accessing technology and software and various platforms. Others however, do not. This results in a very wideGap in the ability of various students to learn well remotely.

You mean black kids are too dumb to use computers?

Well, that’s what the racist lefties in the media think:

For Students of Color, Remote Learning Environments Pose Multiple Challenges

The legacy of racism may be more visible during the pandemic, but it operates all the time, making it harder for Black and brown children to succeed in school and learn at home.

www.urban.org

https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2020/04/24/an-old-story-made-new-again-why-students-color-are-primed-be-left-behind-covid-19-crisis/

 

[Unkotare]

With all of this remote learning, it has become more and more apparent that there is a real distinction between students who have had the opportunity to use technology we take for granted all their lives and those who have not. Some students are very familiar with working on the computer and have a great facility for accessing technology and software and various platforms. Others however, do not. This results in a very wideGap in the ability of various students to learn well remotely.

You mean black kids are too dumb to use computers?

NO, that’s NOT what I mean.

 

[Unkotare]

Even after a few weeks of this, many students are still having difficulty adapting to remote learning. Some are still rather intimidated by the technology. Others are having a hard time integrating the new information with their level of English language ability. And frankly, many of the older teachers are also struggling with new technology and software and learning platforms, etc.

 

[DGS49]

The technology should not be an obstacle to learning the basic material (e.g., math, language, history). It is a tool. If it is not intuitive that is a flaw in the technology.

The real question is, what happens when we get back to "normal" and a large percentage of the student body has learned nothing since February, while another percentage has kept up.

How do the teachers address this difference? Will the former group be hopelessly lost, or the latter group be bored to death? It's "summer break" times ten.

 

[Unkotare]

The technology should not be an obstacle to learning the basic material (e.g., math, language, history). It is a tool. If it is not intuitive that is a flaw in the technology.
...

That depends, in part, on the students and their circumstances.

 

[Unkotare]

...
The real question is, what happens when we get back to "normal" and a large percentage of the student body has learned nothing since February, while another percentage has kept up.

How do the teachers address this difference? Will the former group be hopelessly lost, or the latter group be bored to death? It's "summer break" times ten.

The current thinking is to try and leapfrog the kids ahead to where they should be at this point and fill in the most important gaps as they present themselves. Easier said than done.