Reports show that digital access is one of the biggest educational challenges facing young people in low-income households.
Year 9 students from disadvantaged backgrounds are on average 4.5 years behind in reading and 3.2 years behind in maths compared to their more advantaged peers, highlighting the importance of supporting these students with the resources they need to learn, both in the classroom and at home.
According to the latest NAP ICT Literacy report, 25% of Year 10 students and 40% of Year 6 students don’t have access to a suitable device outside school. Meanwhile, the Australian Digital Inclusion Index shows that although the digital divide has narrowed, many disadvantaged students are falling further behind.
As Australia marks Anti-Poverty Week (13-19 October), The Smith Family, WorkVentures, and Good Things Foundation are jointly highlighting the growing issue of digital poverty.
While initiatives like the charity’s Learning for Life program have been working hard to address this issue, 30% of students supported through the program remain digitally excluded, meaning they lack access to a laptop or tablet, either their own or shared, in a household with mobile or broadband internet.
Inflation crisis exacerbating digital divide
Doug Taylor, CEO of The Smith Family says the rising cost of living continues to have a sizable impact on Australia’s digital divide.
“Being digitally connected is now a non-negotiable for a child’s education, with digital skills being just as important as literacy and numeracy,” Taylor told The Educator. “But cost of living is putting digital devices and a reliable internet connection further out of reach for many families, this puts children at risk of falling behind and disengaging in their learning.”
Earlier this year, a survey of the families The Smith Family works with found around half were worried their children would miss out on the digital devices needed for the school year ahead.
“Bridging the digital divide is a task for all of us, but change needs to happen at a national level,” he said.
“In partnership with WorkVentures, we’re calling on the federal government to develop a National Device Bank to help ensure all students and families are digitally included.”
‘Digital devices are now non-negotiable’
Taylor said digital devices are now “non-negotiable in both the classroom and at home”.
“Students simply cannot hope to complete their homework and assignments without having these items and being digitally connected,” he said.
“While it’s promising to see some improvement in closing the digital divide, the reality is still that too many children, already affected by disadvantage, are being further impacted by digital poverty.”
The Smith Family’s recent Community Attitudes survey found that, alongside literacy and numeracy skills, 79% of respondents believe digital skills are critical to a young person’s education. Moreover, 8 in 10 think students experiencing poverty are further disadvantaged when they lack access to essential digital resources for classroom participation.
Caroline McDaid, CEO of WorkVentures, said closing the digital divide involves educating the public about digital exclusion and proactively helping Australians affected by it to overcome these challenges.
“We’re proud to support The Smith Family’s work by helping students access the technology they need and empowering them to take full advantage of the resources and opportunities available to them.”