Research

As K-12 officials in many states close schools and shift classes and assignments online due to the spread of the new coronavirus, they confront the reality that some students do not have reliable access to the internet at home – particularly those who are from lower-income households. Here are key findings about the internet, homework and how the digital divide impacts American youth:

A new Knight Foundation and Gallup study confirms that, for Americans, the techlash is real, widespread, and bipartisan. From concerns about the spread of misinformation to election interference and data privacy, we’ve documented the deep pessimism of folks across the political spectrum who believe tech companies have too much power — and that they do more harm than good. Some findings:

Connected Nation Michigan found that while each community may face its own unique challenges to providing telehealth services, many trends and correlations may be found: 

New Jersey ranks highest overall in the nation with 98% wired broadband coverage and 78% low-priced plan availability. Alaska ranks lowest overall, with 61% wired and fixed wireless broadband coverage and no low-priced (wired) plan availability. Despite being the 2nd largest state by population, Texas came in 8th overall for broadband availability and pricing. California, the largest state, came in 13th place. Affordable wired internet is most widely available in Rhode Island, where 89% of the population has access to a broadband plan $60 or under.

Nine OECD countries – up from six a year ago – now have high-speed fibre making up 50% or more of their fixed Internet connections, according to an update to the OECD’s broadband portal. Across the 37 countries studied, the share of fibre in total broadband has only risen slightly, to 27% as of 30 June 2019 from 24% a year earlier, reflecting the still-wide gap between countries in rolling out fibre, which enables much faster fixed and mobile Internet. The data shows Lithuania, Latvia, Spain and New Zealand starting to c

This report provides an overview of the digital divide in the Third Federal Reserve District, with a focus on determining which groups stand to benefit the most from a concerted effort toward digital inclusion. The report describes patterns of broadband availability and adoption for the Third District (eastern Pennsylvania, southern New Jersey, and Delaware) as a whole, followed by a regional comparison of digital access using a typology of broadband.

This study was designed to understand the repercussions of absent or poor home Internet connectivity on student performance and the associated costs to society. The focus is on Internet connectivity outside of school among middle and high school students enrolled in rural and smalltown schools. This report examines how differences in the type and quality of home connectivity (eg, broadband vs.

Through the TestIT app, we demonstrated that small counties are disproportionately impacted by the digital divide. With regards to fixed-wireless levels, 59.6 percent of counties were experiencing the internet below 25 mbps including 16 percent of large counties, 44 percent of mid-sized counties and 74 percent of small counties. Regardless of size and demographics, all counties and communities across America should have access to affordable, reliable and high-speed Internet.

After years of strong connectivity growth, high-income countries are approaching universal Internet access and the 5G era, however, the pace of growth in low-income countries has fallen to just 3.8%, making progress towards universal and affordable Internet access more arduous. Global Internet connectivity has grown substantially over the past five years, yet today nearly half the world remains on the other side of the digital divide.

Getting internet to the school is just one piece of the puzzle in closing the digital divide and the growing “homework gap” in which students lack residential and community broadband access. Even in communities with exceptional broadband in their schools, how are student experiences affected when nearby institutions and establishments, including libraries, churches and other public facilities, have limited digital resources and connectivity?