Closing the digital divide for K-12

The curve of technology adoption for K-12 today is very similar to what it has been for the past twenty years, according to the latest report from Project Tomorrow. 

There continues to be a small group of early adopting teachers who are transforming schools with their design of student-centered learning in the classroom. Another small group of reluctant adopters who despite having extensive technology access in their classrooms use those resources to primarily support teacher productivity or through more passive applications with their students. Most teachers are in the middle of this bell curve.

But the day-to-day logistics of designing individual educational experiences for each student in a classroom of 24 or more 3rd graders, for example, is daunting for most teachers. Meanwhile, with the greater investment in technology resources for the classroom over the past few years, the assumption is that effective digital learning is the norm across most classrooms from kindergarten through high school. While the use of digital tools and resources within the learning process has become ubiquitous in most classrooms, one question remains.
To what extent are teachers designing learning experiences with technology to support personalized learning and address individual student needs?

Technology to personalize learning

Only 22% of the teachers surveyed for the Project Tomorrow report said that they are tapping into technology resources daily to create learning experiences customized for the unique needs of their students. Roughly a quarter of teachers (26%) say they rarely or never do that. And an additional 12% report only designing learning experiences with students’ needs in mind for specific units or projects. 

The remaining 40% of teachers said they only use technology occasionally to support individual students' needs. Therefore, the promise of technology to enable more personalized learning for all students is still an unfinished business item in many classrooms.

While 52% of teachers say they need more professional learning to understand how to effectively use technology to differentiate instruction, only 31% say that they are interested in learning how to facilitate greater student ownership of their own learning.

One barrier to success in this endeavor is centered on the inequitable access to time and support of professional learning for all teachers, educators, and practitioners to design learning experiences for all students using edtech. That process towards equity starts with a greater appreciation of the connection between technology use in the classroom and the design of those learning experiences to meet students’ learning needs and preferences.

School and district leaders should use reports such as Project Tomorrow’s to support their teachers in the design of digital learning experiences that support students’ preparation for future success. 

Next steps

Educators must think differently about the role of technology within the learning process, the report finds. Administrators must strategically and explicitly identify how specific digital tools and resources can help personalize the learning process for every student, meeting each student where they are in terms of their academic strengths as well as weaknesses. 

Some of the work has already begun. The report finds that it is encouraging that school leaders recognize the value of using personalized approaches to building teacher capacity. Further, it finds that an increasing number of teachers are gaining meaningful experience in using technology to create more individualized learning programs for their students.  

It's a given that every student learns differently. Now, with the right technology, teachers can support personalized learning models that adapt to students’ unique needs and support the growing list of available classroom technologies. To deliver on the promise of new teaching platforms and online learning initiatives, districts and administrators need scalable solutions that support increased bandwidth needs.

How Spectrum Business help

Spectrum Business is one of the nation's leading internet connectivity providers. With over 20 years of experience partnering with schools to provide solutions, Spectrum Business is a reliable partner with the E-Rate expertise you need for the Category One, Category Two and non-E-Rate solutions your district needs to keep up with today's increasing demands.

Our managed internal connectivity services are eligible for Category Two funding, with infrastructure solutions like Managed Network Edge. This managed solution provides next generation firewall protection, malware protection, content filtering, web application control, intrusion protection, and packet inspection of encrypted traffic. Delivered over the Cisco Meraki platform, Managed Network Edge is designed to scale as your networking needs grow. Find out why two of the largest school districts in the country partner with Spectrum Business for their connectivity needs.