Education technology

In Virginia, as in other states, school officials are racing to reach families by publicizing discounted offers from Internet providers, extending school Wi-Fi into parking lots, and distributing hotspot devices. And schools trying to do more face a major hurdle: long-standing laws that effectively bar county governments and public school systems from providing Internet directly to families.

For most students, getting ready for school in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic now simply involves opening up their computer and turning on their video camera. However, for a sizable group of students who do not have access to the internet, the classroom—which once was filled with a teacher, other students, and desks—is now an empty parking lot close to a reachable Wi-Fi network. Some school districts are scrambling to supply students with devices to reach online schooling.

Like many school districts nationwide, COVID-19 forced the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District (SMMUSD) to brainstorm ways to provide internet access for families in need. It partnered with Wander, a company with high-speed internet options at $25 per month, to provide free access to its fixed wireless networks for the remainder of the school year.

Homeschooling students amid the coronavirus pandemic significantly amplifies economic inequities between households. Household income and a family's employment status can determine whether a student has the resources to learn remotely. Income significantly affects access to broadband and data plans, the foundations of keeping up with schoolwork when classes are cancelled.

Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey stunned Oakland schools and city leaders with a $10 million donation to a campaign aimed at providing computers and internet access to all students in the Oakland Unified School District. Dorsey's donation came after a group of city officials including Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf and district Superintendent Kyla Johnson-Trammel held an online news conference announcing the effort.

Many districts around the US have pulled the plug on distance learning. It's too stressful, the lack of devices and internet access is too much to overcome, and what students get from it just isn't worth the struggle. Districts around the country are ending the school year early including Omaha and some nearby suburban districts in Nebraska, Washington (DC), and some in New Hampshire.

Even during a pandemic, governments have a legal obligation to provide all students equal access to an adequate education, the American Civil Liberties Union and over 25 ACLU state chapters warned in letters to state and local leaders nationwide. To help meet this obligation during the COVID-19 pandemic, the ACLU is demanding Congress and state and local governments ensure all students have equal access to the technologies that make effective remote learning possible, and that strong and uniform privacy safeguards are in place to protect students in the virtual classroom.

Despite Hamilton County (TN) Schools' efforts to ensure students had technology and teachers had a game plan, many educators say academic engagement wasn't where they'd like it to be. In many cases, access to broadband internet or Wi-Fi was the biggest barrier for student learning.

Like many schools throughout the US, when the coronavirus forced Santa Fe (NM) Public Schools (SFPS) to go online, this 12,000-student district quickly put together an implementation plan and went to work. Though Santa Fe has pockets of wealth, New Mexico is one of the poorest states in the country, and the Santa Fe school district’s free and reduced lunch rate is 75 percent. But the district has received significant community support through a property tax-funded Educational Technology Note.

Reps Anna Eshoo (D-CA-18), Doris Matsui (D-CA-6), G.K. Butterfield (D-NC-01), Joaquin Castro (D-TX-20),  Marcia Fudge (D-OH-11), Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-DE-At-Large), and Alma Adams (D-NC-12) introduced legislation to establish a new program to support college students who are unable to participate in distance learning. The Supporting Connectivity for Higher Education Students in Need Act provides $1 billion to colleges and universities to pay for at-home internet connections for students in need.