Millions of Students With Home Internet Access Still Can’t Get Online

Though about 12 million students in the United States still lack any internet access at all—a problem cast into relief during the pandemic—there is good news: That number is steadily shrinking. Yet, even as the number of unconnected students declines, there is another group that, for years, has made virtually no headway. That is students who are “under-connected.” Students and families who are considered under-connected are those who have internet access and devices in their home, but not at a caliber or quality sufficient for smooth and consistent online learning. “There are still a proportion of families who have no internet access, and that’s massively important,” says Vikki Katz, associate professor in the School of Communication and Information at Rutgers University. “But there are many, many, many more kids who, if we’re just focused on ‘access,’ we’re ignoring. We’re going to miss this huge number—millions—of families.” Katz believes the term “digital divide” does a disservice to many under-connected families. “The phrase ‘digital divide’ frames this as binary—there is no access or there’s all access,” says Katz. “This study gives a powerful argument for why we need to reframe the definition of ‘access.’”