THE DIGITAL DIVIDE

“So, your kids must love the iPad?” I asked Mr. [Steve] Jobs, trying to change the subject. The company’s first tablet was just hitting the shelves. “They haven’t used it,” he told me. “We limit how much technology our kids use at home.” (Nytimes article, Sept. 10, 2014)”   ― Nick Bilton  (https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/tag/technology-addiction)

W

e have no one to blame but ourselves.  As a society, we have turned our children into little monsters, and now we, the parents, teachers, grandparents, waiters, etc. are suffering the consequences.  Our son began the “change” the day he graduated preschool.  That’s right, you heard me, preschool.  That is the day he received his first tablet.  We bought a tablet for a five-year-old because he graduated preschool and officially introduced him to the world of technology.  As a consequence of this, he hasn’t been the same since that day.

As a society, though, it is challenging to monitor and limit our children’s screen time, given the current technological environment we live in.  Nowadays, when checking in at the doctor’s office, we digitally sign in to let them know we are there.  When we go out to dinner as a family, many chain restaurants have electronic tablets on the tables for the children to play games and entertain themselves while they wait for their food.  Customers then pay their bill, using the tablet on their table, at the end of the meal.  So, the tablets can not be removed from the table and out of sight from the children because they are assigned to that specific table.  Plus, the kids know which restaurants have the tablets versus the ones that do not, so there is no point trying to avoid them.  At the same time, the parents are playing on their phones, typically not talking to each other either.  We have become a society of automation that doesn’t speak to each other. 

I know I am not the only person guilty of this.  I will be in the bedroom, and my husband might be in the kitchen cooking with his headphones on.  So I do not have to get up to ask him a question, I will text him instead of physically walking into the kitchen.  And then he will text me back.  Friends sit across from each other at the lunch table and text each other instead of partaking in an actual verbal conversation.  FaceTime has changed social time among teens completely.  The day I turned 16, my parents let me skip school to get my license.  That night, my brand new license, and I took my friends out for a spin in my (used) new car.  Countless teenagers today are waiting to get their driver’s license until they turn 18 or 19 years old because why would they need a license to hang out with their friends?  They have FaceTime and can all hang out “in person” online.  When I was a teenager, it was a sin to be home each night, especially on the weekends!  Now, times have definitely changed.    

A typical evening in our house. My husband
playing on his cell phone while my son and
I complete our homework on our laptops.

Additionally, my son’s school has become almost entirely electronic now.  At first, I was hesitant because I was not sure how subjects such as math would work online.  But it truly works great.  His school uses Google Classroom so parents can keep up with their child’s progress, test grades, and school work.  They also use the Remind app, where his teachers (and administrators if necessary) send out homework reminders, or any other essential information parents need to be aware of.  For children like my son, this works out perfectly.  We had to make a small adjustment at the beginning of the school year because my son and I both need to use the computer frequently, as we are both in school.  Therefore, we bought him a new laptop right after school started in August.  In reality, this is a luxury and not something many parents can afford, especially parents with multiple children in school. 

My husband and I consistently tell our son that his electronics are a privilege, not a “right,” and we can take them away from him at any time.  We remind him how incredibly fortunate he is because there are numerous kids that not only do not have electronics, but they also don’t have internet access at home.  This is something he can’t comprehend.  No Internet?!  Of course, my son is merely thinking about his video games and watching YouTube.  He could care less about having access to the Internet for his homework.  Nevertheless, what about the children that do not have use of the Internet or a computer at home to complete their homework or school projects?  "Numerous policymakers and advocates have expressed concern that students with less access to certain technologies may fall behind their more digitally connected peers" (Anderson & Perrin, 2018).  Those of us that are fortunate enough to not only have access to the Internet but multiple electronic devices as well, assume everyone does.    

“The Internet and broadband and cloud communications are integral to our society — our businesses, our neighborhoods, our personal lives." (as cited by Stone, 2016) - Mitsuko R. Herrera, Director of the ultraMontgomery Program in the county’s Department of Technology Services (https://www.govtech.com/education/Tackling-the-Homework-Gap-Maryland-County-FiberNet-Infrastructure-Public-Private-Partnerships.html)

Consequently, we have become a society that focuses so much on technology that we have created what many call the digital divide.  This digital divide, otherwise referred to as the “homework gap,” frequently creates academic challenges for many students because they don’t have access to the Internet or an electronic device to complete their homework (Anderson & Kumar, 2019).  High-speed internet service is a vital component to keeping this technological society going that many of us have thoughtlessly come to rely on so much. 

Over the next five to ten years, I predict technology is going to become an even more significant part of our lives than we realize.  It will impact our education, our government and politics, corporations, media and entertainment, etc. in ways that we can only imagine.  Since we are aware of the problem, while we have the opportunity, changes need to be made in how we use our technology.  First, we need to ensure everyone has access to it if we are going to keep moving in the direction of computerization and automating every aspect of our lives.  Second, if we don’t want to be replaced by robots in the future, maybe we better stop acting like them around our friends and family and start interacting with each other again like human beings.  That way, when robots eventually replace us in the future, we will have something to talk about with each other.      

"I'm good with digital technology, but I start to miss the physical world.  I miss riding my bike, talking to friends."  - Pranav Mistry (https://www.brainyquote.com/topics/digital-technology-quotes) 

Resources

Anderson, M., & Perrin, A. (2018, October 26). Nearly one-in-five teens can’t always finish their homework because of the digital divide. Retrieved from https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2018/10/26/nearly-one-in-five-teens-cant-always-finish-their-homework-because-of-the-digital-divide/

Anderson, M., & Kumar, M. (2019, May 7). Digital divide persists even as lower-income Americans make gains in tech adoption. Retrieved from https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2019/05/07/digital-divide-persists-even-as-lower-income-americans-make-gains-in-tech-adoption/