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How do we fix this? I know the Digital Divide video itself discussed using Nonprofits and Corporations to help with funding issues, but how do we do this? I feel like turning to corporations is a little iffy, what is the legality of them helping provide technology to schools-- advertising vs. donations? And Nonprofits are few and far between, right? How can we as educators help bridge the divide? Grantwriting? Finding access to technology for students-- ie.- libraries, possible partnerships with other schools? I felt like I was left with more questions than answers.

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"The broken glass of a previous generation may very well turn into the violent shards and the bloody eyes of this generation." - Ruha Benjamin

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I loved what Professor Benjamin had to say about the ALIFT fallacies, but I especially loved the last one about Tokenism. In her speech, she referred to minorities holding positions of power being mistaken as reasons to not make any more progress. However, I was trying to explain this idea in the Exceptional Children class as this is how I view ADA. Yes, the ADA is an incredibly wonderful institution that I'm glad we have, but it's not enough. It's one drop in the bucket in a sea of ableism and inequity. More needs to happen.

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I agree with the point that we are not just fighting for our kids now, but the future. If we do not properly prepare students for their future, which is leaning towards a much more technological world, than they will not have the tools to be as successful as they can be and reach their full potential in their workplace or society as a whole.

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Without a Net: The Digital Divide in America.

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Without a Net: The Digital Divide in America.

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"If I were to imagine a school with no technology, it would be a very difficult education. We would have a completely different life, we would have different life and aspirations we do now." The two girls talking about an education without technology at Lower Marion High School is eye opening when 5 miles away a different high school is struggling just to have computers.

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Incubate a better world in the minds  and hearts of students.

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Incubate a better world in the minds  and hearts of students.

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I don't know if the "disagree" section is the correct section to write this, but I am using this section to say I agree with Professor Benjamin, and that I do not agree with how the teacher handled the situation. Professor Benjamin told the story of Ahmed (Spelling) Muhammad building a science project of a clock in his pencil case. Ahmed was so excited about the science project and showing it to his teacher and class, only to get arrested for suspicion of it being a homemade bomb. Professor Benjamin went on to say he probably would not have been arrested if his name was Adam, and I agree with her. It is sad that a person's ethnicity and race caused the teacher to doubt the ingenuity of his work. How many kids have ideas and inventions that are too afraid to speak out or show them because they will be looked at in fear or disbelief?

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An "Ah-ha" moment for me while watching the Verizon Innovative Learning video about Penn Wood high school is that the student, Jameira Miller, wanted to make the most of her opportunity and be prepared for college the following year, but due to her school she is not able to have the same opportunity. Many times, you hear that "kids of this generation are lazy"; however, in this video it highlights a driven student who wants to make the most of her educational career, and is limited by her opportunities, not her work ethic or desire. It just goes to show that people's assumptions and stereotypes, are not always accurate or valid.

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"In the United States we have one of the most unequal public school systems in the industrialized world"

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As a future Physical Education teacher, I am more focused on the physical and mental well being of my future students. For me, it is almost "Anti-PE" to be sitting in front of a computer for multiple hours a day, because children are being more sedative, and not active. I would utilize technology in a completely different way in my PE classroom, than a general education classroom. Many times, PE is seen as the time of the day where students are able to take a break from being in front of a computer, and it is there time to be more active, running around, outside, etc. I am not arguing the fact that technology is extremely important and a vital part of students' education, I am merely arguing that technology would be used in a completely different way in a PE classroom, than it would be in a typical classroom.

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How do school districts and states provide adequate and efficient training in technology that will be useful for teachers in their classroom? How can training be specified to the districts' needs and teacher's needs in the classroom?

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While watching video 2, I was fascinated by the discussion of code switching and social codes. I had learned about code switching through other classes and various podcasts but had never thought about it as an inherent aspect of our social structure. Ruhan Benjamin talked about Professor Emden and his classes in which he embraces individual student's cultures and uses their diversity to add to the quality of the class, rather than expecting all of his students to conform to one social code. The idea of rewriting codes was definitely an ah-ha moment for me as I believe this is an essential way to change society. If we rewrite these codes, we can in turn deconstruct social hierarchies and work towards closing the digital divide. These social hierarchies were discussed in video 1 as lower income schools were not awarded the same opportunities as schools in wealthier districts. Technologically, economically, and intellectually leveling the playing field could be a possible route to equity and equality.

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After watching video 1, I started to think more about school funding. The public schools I attended when I was younger were relatively well funded and we never had any issues with wifi or access to technology. Hearing that some schools rely on corporate or non profit funding because of a lack of government support is really disappointing. I agree with the video that it is essential for the government to be an agent of change and invest in low income schools, as this investment will eventually turn a great profit and contribute to the evolution of society.

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"These social codes include the elaborate systems of stratification that we call class, race, and gender, which were originally designed not as markers of personal identity, but as tools of classification and control" -Ruha Benjamin

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Until watching video 1, I never thought about how technology or the lack of technology could change the whole track of a students life. To think that students could form completely different interests and personalities based on their access to technology in schools is wild to me.

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I totally agree that students with less access to technology in schools are left out of the future which is growing towards being 100 percent tech based everyday. They won't have access to tech jobs or be able to evolve and grow their community. The lack of technology in school is just another socioeconomic set back that low income schools and their students face. They are struggling to learn now and they will struggle to succeed in the future.

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"The battle over real power tomorrow begins with the struggle over who gets to dream today." If the sky is the limit for some students who have access to as much tech as they need than other students who do not will never reach their full potential. Putting these low income students in a place where they are not being taught in an up to date way will inhibit how much they can accomplish in the future.

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In this video they say that the first challenge  in the school is having up to date and working technology. This was a big realization for me. As an aspiring teacher, I tend to focus on preparing myself for teaching and fail to think about not having resources to do what I want in class. It is sad that some schools in America still do not have the technology needed to prepare students for college and careers that are heavily reliant on being able to use technology proficiently.

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"Without technology they are doomed."

I agree with this quote, but also think it is quite an exaggeration using the word "doomed" When I heard this it made me somewhat sad in two different ways. Sad that it seems like we are almost too dependent on technology. On the other hand it is very unfortunate the inequality and inequity that plays a part in technology available to schools.

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The Verizon documentary does a good job of identifying the issue of the digital divide and the inequities which caused it, however I fundamentally disagree with how the video frames the possible solution. When the Verizon representative said that they hoped that other companies would follow their model and improve it, that sentiment rang very hollow to me. This kind of laissez-faire approach is completely incongruous to the severity of this issue and the urgency which it requires. The issue is fundamentally caused by systemic inequities in our government, and the problem cannot be solved without confronting the system head-on.

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"Children exist today in parallel realities, where some are nurtured and others crushed." -Ruha Benjamin

Unfortunately, in my experiences as a substitute teacher in an array of schools with varying levels of resources, I have experienced this firsthand. In the well-funded schools, the kids are more engaged and feel there is more at stake in their schooling, whereas in the under-resourced schools, it seems like many students are disconnected and can't see the point. It's really disheartening to be in a classroom full of 8 year olds and get the sense that some of them have already given up on school.

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When Dr. Benjamin opened her discussion with the challenge to imagine a more equitable future, it reminded me of how big and connected all of these social issues are. The social hierarchies which have shaped material conditions for centuries are reinforced by our lack of imagination. Many people in our society cannot imagine a more equitable future because their entire worldview is centered on our inequitable and unjust system which they view as immutable or even perfect as it is. I think one of our duties as educators will be to give the next generations the capacity for this type of imagination, as it is crucial for building a more equitable social order.

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"Why can we imagine growing heart cells in a lab, but not growing empathy for other human beings in our everyday lives, even more in institutions"-Ruha Benjamin
-I just feel like this hit the nail on the head so hard, if we taught empathy and focused on education as a way to connect everyone, as a way to make an equal playing field for everyone, so to speak, we might not have such an unequal society.

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Well, this moment was more of a confirmation of an old Ah-ha moment for me. Years and years ago when I was in High school, I didn't have the best technology, and computers were limited. However, another high school less than 10 miles away had adequate technology for its curriculums. The first video showed the difference between two high schools with the same problem I endured. The ah-ha was not every school (even in a progressive state like NY) is going to be "well funded". Many schools do drop under the radar when it comes to modern-day learning. In the last 5-6 years my alma mater just got a huge update and received apple products for learning. Sadly, they are still behind the curve.

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One "Ah-ha" moment I had was at the very beginning of Video 1 when the two girls at the wealthier school with the fancy technology explained how without technology, they would have different goals in their lives. This struck me because it is something that, shamefully, I had never considered. When thinking about the importance of technology in schools, I had never even thought about the fact that if you are not presented to as many fields through technology, then you will not know what is out there to explore. The students at the schools without technology have not had the exposure to the technology that the girls who wanted to be engineers had. Because of this, they may have never considered becoming an engineer, or if they had, then they may think it was not possible for them. Technology in schools affects more than just the classroom; it affects the students' future.

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"If you don't give those young people the tools and the training and the teachers and technology to start building a future that works for themselves, then the future is likely to be very bad for them and therefore bad for us. Because you can't leave out millions and millions of young people and give them no hope. It's just that stark." -Van Jones

I chose this quote not only because I really respect Van Jones, but thought this quote was a simple way to see the connection between the inequalities in America's education system from school to school and how it affects the future of our country.

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"To do nothing is to choose the default settings of this failing system." - Ruha Benjamin

This quote really stood out to me. As soon as I heard it, I had to stop the video and go back and rewatch it. This quote goes to prove that if we continue to leave students behind due to wealth and digital gaps by not providing our schools with the necessary technology, the gaps will continue to grow to a place where there is no solution. By not paying attention to the needs of our students and our teachers, we are creating an education system that will only get worse with time.

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My question is how feasible is supplying low income schools with technology? We lack in funding for education as a whole, and funding to pay our educators a living wage, so I just don’t understand how we could possibly find the funds to supply all schools with technological advances.

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Growing up, I had access to school computers. Once I left the public school system, they introduced iPads and take-home laptops, which my little sister was able to use and learn from. I saw her use so many different educational apps and learn a variety of different things. I agree that kids should have access to this type of technology, and the ability to expand their learning through the Internet.

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“ If we can create hope, if we can let one student know that they can rise to the level that they want to go, that they can get the job that they want to have, then we’ve accomplished our work.”

I really liked this quote because it not only shows the importance of advocacy on a teachers part, but it also shows how impactful educators can be.

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"If you want to teach a child to use computers, they have to have computers"
Schools need to be able to provide students with computers and technology in order for them to be able to learn how to use it.

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America was once a global leader. Without access to technology, we can't keep up with children in other countries. "If we don't close the digital divide our kids will get left behind in the global economy." Access to technology for all schools will help to close the global divide that they mention in the video. America is falling behind because we haven't figured out how to fund all schools to ensure they have the equipment needed to ensure students success.

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"Whose voices are missing when decisions are made in technology and education?"

There were a myriad of quotes that I could've picked. However, I liked that this phrase is a callout on policies, laws and social codes that we have only considered a few and not maybe the most needed that will benefit from more thoughtful process in technological advances. At the end, if we would need to change the world as it is to actually break social codes that are built to create equality.

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Educators are cultural workers. We have to educate a society that develop new social technologies that will help to transform social codes, we need to rewrite codes instead of just code switching. For example, Dr. Benjamin mentions how women in a business environment full of women act different than in a business environment full of men, and that should not happen. However, we are taught to switch codes instead of rewriting them. It requires innovation and creativity in developing the minds of our students to be able to change the world that is not currently working.

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I basically agree with everything she said! But it is crucial to hit the concluding remarks where she says that we limit our imagination and our student's imagination by having 5 fallacies: ahistorical, legalistic, individualistic, fixed and tokenistic.  For example, in the latter, just placing women or minorities in positions of power is a good step, but it's not all, and we live in a world that just counting the number of minorities in a position of power should not be pad on the back to companies, we should do more. Just making laws that protect minorities is not enough, it takes a cultural change and social code breaking for those laws to work, or else, it would be enough to collecting evidence that the business considered enough minorities, even though they chose the white male, or choosing a minority and paying them less than they would a white male.

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"Our role as educators is to incubate a better world in the mind and hearts of our students." -Ruha Benjamin
For many students, school is their safe place. I agree that educators should help students to see that the world can be a better place and that they have the power to make it a better place.

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"Yesterday's Fictions become tomorrow's blueprint" -Raha Benjamin
I like the relation to Star Trek. I think it's interesting when an idea from the past becomes a reality. The jetsons was an old show airing in the 1960s and again in 1980s that used the idea of a 3D printer to get food and years later we actually have 3D printers. They also predicted video calls, flying cars, and robot vacuums.

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While I agree with most things in this video, the one thing that stuck out to me was how when trying to stand up for women, it seemed like men were being stereotyped. She mentions how women don't want to be characterized but then jokes about how men could be less aggressive and more cooperative. If as women, we don't want to be stereotyped, I think we should offer the same respect to men.

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"By 2022, 77% of all U.S. jobs will require computer skills."

As teachers, we have the responsibility to prepare our students for their futures. More than that, these students want to grow to their highest potential. Our generation is revolved around technology, so we can only imagine the involvement of technology in the future. How can teachers fully prepare students to simply succeed in a job with not even a computer in the school?

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In the first video, Keith Devlin is a Ph.D. who speaks about the necessary change we need to make regarding the role of teachers. In the 21st century, he claims it is essential that we transition from instruction to coaching. He clarified that there are good apps that help students to solve problems themselves. Overall, this part of the video rubbed me the wrong way. I completely understand that teachers are experiencing a shift, but I believe there needs to be a healthy balance to all of this. I personally want to do more than "coach." I think a balanced learning environment of technology is more natural and overall healthier. That being said, I do want to understand more about what this ideal balance would be.

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In the first video it says that "if we don't close the digital divide our kids are going to be left behind in the global economy." Many of the schools throughout the countries have high tech technology within their school systems that is allowing them to be able to have a better and stronger education than those who don't have that. Meaning there are children out there who are getting left behind since they don't have access to this technology and will all in all be left behind on the economic world.

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An Ah-ha moment for me was in Video 1 where they juxtaposed Penn Wood High School with a very affluent school. Jameira Miller discusses the basic tools that are lacking at Penn Wood and her knowledge on these disadvantages. Only five miles away shows an affluent school of students  building robots. The school literally incorporates technology and engineering courses. I just found this intersection to be the epitome of American education. One school is simply asking for the bare minimum, computers in order to succeed and graduate. The latter has all the tools and more to integrate success beyond the classroom.

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I agree completely with the idea that technology cannot just be placed in the classroom. Teachers must have sufficient time and practice to understand the technology and applications in order to give them the means of success. Learning through technology is a completely different instruction. Teachers are no longer telling students what to do and how to do it, they are now coaching students into solving outcomes themselves. Kevin Devlin states, "We need to shift teacher education from an instruction model to a coaching model, because thats whats needed in the 21st century." Here, the success of the student comes from the adequately trained and up to date teacher.

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"We want you to learn computers, but you can't have one"
That about sums it up in some classrooms. The disadvantage that some students continue to face is growing more rapidly in the wrong direction each year. We can't expect our students to be successful in life if they are not provided the tools.

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Even if schools have the technology, it's up to the actual teachers to be knowledgable about how to use it. I did not realize at first how important that is.

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"The question for us is how do we make our schools laboratories of democratic participation, rather than sites where inequality is reproduced, where not only is the potential of each individual child realized, but where we're experimenting with technologies of love, of reciprocity, and of justice." Dr. Benjamin

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Video 1 - Without a Net: The Digital Divide in America

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Video 1 - Without a Net: The Digital Divide in America

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"The problem is not simple taking technology and distributing into schools but it's providing the know-how, the practices to help teachers be successful"

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I really get upset when it comes to disproportionate school funding and budgets. Honestly it raises my blood pressure! To see the future for some of these students being limited for a lack of what other students take for granted in not fair. It breaks my heart hearing some of these stories.

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Verizon Innovative Learning Needs to Push Further

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Verizon Innovative Learning Needs to Push Further

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I liked the Verizon Innovative Learning video, but I wish it had touched more on the systemic inequalities of our political system. It is not just the access to wifi, technology, and adequate teacher learning that will close the gap. It is engaging with racial and cultural issues while also fighting the system's failure to consider social equality. In order to transform our schools with equal access to technologies and tools for the future, we must consider the social realities and histories of these students and teachers. I believe in order to close the gap, the technological side is only a small part of the issue at hand. It would have been important in my opinion for the Verizon video to touch on the history of inequalities in public school systems. Perhaps a basis on how inequality is contrived would help transform the social world rather than just the material world.

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As a white women, how can I help contribute in the fight to end the divide? How can knowledge on the broader contexts of racism and inequality build on the potential of each student? I feel like the digital divide can only be fixed once we face the social divide.

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While watching video one, at the very beginning, when it shows the students who are attending Lower Marion High School, they are working with a lot of technology, their dreams are to work with this technology, and like they said, without it they would have different dreams. For me, becoming an elementary school teacher can be done without technology, but for them wanting to become aerospace engineers, or similar things involving technology or engineering, they would not be able to do this so easily if their schools did not have technology, some might not even discover their interests or passions for these careers without this technology. It shows that while technology is not really needed, but having it makes things easier, it opens more pathways for some people, and might even help someone discover the career that they are interested in without it. And looking at this school and the opportunities provided there, and looking at the other one that lacks them, we see students who want more technology, they want to be able to have access to things that might make things easier for them or open up interests for them. It really shows how unequal schools and education can be that even in the same country, state, town, or district, there might be really advanced schools with a lot of technology, and others who might have none at all, and there are many students who miss out on certain classes or experiences because of this.

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"If you don't give those young people the tools, and the training, and the teachers, and the technology to start building a future that works for themselves, then the future is likely to be very bad for them and therefore bad for us, because you can't leave out millions and millions of young people and give them no hope. It's just that stark."
I found this quote stuck out to me the most people of how simple, but impactful it is. If we leave students without the help and technology they need in schools, when they are out they will not be prepared to use what should've been taught, and then more than just that student will suffer because of it.

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In video one, Jameira's father says, "We want our children to live life even more prosperous than us, without technology they are doomed." While to some this may seem over the top or not completely true, it is actually way more serious than many think or grasp. Our world is turning into a technology run world, and in order to live life in this world, you have to know how to work all this technology. Many people young children already are getting starts on that by getting phones and tablets and things like that, but technology is way more complex than that. I grew up with video game consoles and a computer, but even know I can not work half the things on my computer because I never had to use them and no one taught me. The school I attended from Kindergarten until I graduated High School was one that did not use computers and all the technology in it was very, very outdated, so switching from that to College where I am constantly using my Laptop was quite new for me and took a bit to get used to, so knowing that, and knowing how more progressed technology will get from now to ten or twenty years in the future, if we do not have technology in schools and teach younger ones how to actually use them for more than just videos or games, it will cause many more issues in the future.

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As soon as I heard this I did not quite understand what he meant, but I know overall I did not agree with it. Dr. Keith Devlin states that in the 21st century we have taken such a big technology shift that teachers are no longer really needed, instead there are apps which can be used, and now we just need coaches to show how these apps can be used. This is once again bringing up an issue with technology putting people out of needed jobs, but also even more de-personalizing education. By letting an app do what a teacher usually would, students are losing even more human interaction an immersing themselves too much into technology. I do think technology is a big help to students and teachers, but letting it do a teachers job is not the way to go about it. And even if some or most students work ok with using an app instead of a teacher, that is not the case for everyone. Some may have certain disabilities that do not allow them to understand or focus on some types of technology, others may prefer to hear things rather than see or watch them, and some just may not have access to that technology anywhere but school, so implying that technology should take over teaching is not the way to go about this at all. Technology is a tool to be used in teaching, but not a teacher in everything itself.

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Some really good points were brought up that made me think about technology's effects on the world around us. All too often I have just accepted the "default settings" and not thought deeper. As she mentions they are "tools of classification and control." Especially as a teacher I must do a better job understanding what that means.

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The entire first video was an "ah-ha" moment for me. I knew that there are struggling public schools but I never thought about how deeply rooted and widespread this issue is in the US. It made me think about how lucky I am to have gone to a school that provided laptops and had access to technology. The gap between well-funded and low spending public school districts is something that is easy to turn a blind eye to when it doesn't negatively impact you. It was interesting to see the differences in technology in all the schools. One school had to share a laptop cart, and another had hundreds of untouched ipads due to a lack of teacher training. This made me think about challenges that I could face as a future teacher that I've never considered. While I plan on being an advocate for my students, at the end of the day there is only so much a teacher can do since their is a lack of funding and help for some schools. This is a scary thought.

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"Schools are places where the next generation comes alive or gets crushed." Without access to technology you can pretty well say they get crushed. It is so important to be able to expand students horizons and allow them to dream. When students are left behind our future is in jeopardy. One wonders why we would just stand by and allow this to happen?

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"There should be little doubt that we're living in a time of social crisis, where most people in the world cannot look to hospitals for health, police for safety, politicians for competence, or schools for meaningful knowledge. If we happen to be among the small subset of the earth's population for who this isn't true, we can easily observe evidence of the crisis at every turn, if we choose to keep our eyes open. And what we see when we do that is a world at war with itself."
This quote might not have much to do with equity and access to technology in schools, but I really found it super impactful as it complete truth, but something that so many people ignore and do not believe because they do not keep their eyes open and miss the war even in their own towns or schools. It also just really points out that how we cannot rely on the things we should be able to turn to, and that just is something everyone needs to acknowledge and put an effort into fixing, but unless they are personally suffering from it, it is no priority of theirs.

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I love this video and the way that Ruha Benjamin delivers her speech. She says that teachers need to "experiment with technologies of love, reciprocities, and justice." This summarizes how important the role of an educator is in changing the direction of history. A lot of quotes in this talk could be used to support points from the first video. Those in charge of funding must value the role and impact of educators more highly. It is in our country's best interest to increase funding, training, and technology in all classrooms in order to save the future. Benjamin says that effectively changing the current system can only be done with collaboration through collective action. The issues in the education system can only be fixed if everyone comes together. One small example of this is how Verizon provided an entire school with iPads when they previously had no access to technology.

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Growing up I have always been told that technology is bad and that it is a distraction within classrooms. But the older I get the more I see it as not that since we need it in our everyday lives more so since covid had hit. When did the idea of technology in schools go from bad to now good and did that idea change because of covid?

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"The question for us is how do we make our schools laboratories of democratic participation rather than sites where inequality is reproduced."
This quote really stood out to me as something that I feel like I will need to constantly and continuously ask myself and actively work on addressing as a teacher. Eliminating inequality in schools, making classrooms more accessible and equitable than our society at large, is so important.

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I enjoyed all of Dr. Benjamin's talk! One part that really stood out to me was her discussion of design. She mentioned discriminatory design, and talked about the fact that design is often short-sighted altogether. Basically, she said we design short-term fixes for problems rather than getting to the socioeconomic root of a given issue. I agree and think we can go even farther than that, and say that design can be actively malicious. I'm thinking of anti-homeless hostile architecture specifically, like spikes and barred off corners and the benches Dr. Benjamin discussed. Things like that, which block homeless people from using them to sleep or stay, don't seem like they actually significantly improve anything, just seem to make life harder for rough sleepers and keep the issue of homelessness out of sight for people who don't experience it. I'd be interested to know if anyone else has examples of things they feel are 'bad faith' designs, or if anyone in general disagrees!

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I think my main takeaway from the Verizon video was just that I had a lot of questions. I think part of that is just naturally feeling kind of cautious about what a private tech company would have to say on tech in education, since it feels the goal for a corporation would  ultimately be profit, advertising, good PR, etc. Or maybe I'm just pessimistic! But I know they mentioned having given tablets to a hundred or so schools, and I was wondering about the specific roll out of that. We saw students excitedly open their new personal tablets, but was it a one-time only deal, and students coming up after these groups will have to make do with pencil and paper like before? Did Verizon also provide necessary tech training for teachers, or at least foot the bill for it? What sway do initiatives like this give companies in terms of education reform/decision-making, whether on a larger or smaller scale, if any? Curious to know if anyone else felt similarly or completely disagrees with my take.

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"Because teachers, if actually unified and empowered, can change the direction of history."
"Schools are the places where the next generation either comes alive with possibility, or is crushed by the weight of the odds stacked against them, and the fact is, these two processes coexist. Children today live in parallel realities where some are nurtured, and others crushed."
These quotes are so true, teachers are the ones who shape the minds of future leaders, but it is put at danger when teachers who do not care for their students or are not interested in their job work in this field, they can lead the future world to danger if there are too many, but if they, as she says, are unified and empowered, can make the future even greater by getting each student to be the best to their abilities.

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In Dr. Benjamin's talk, the one part that I liked the most was when she was speaking on the design part. Speaking on how different designs are always made as to what can stop this from happening, what makes the most money, who wants it, and who do we want to keep it from. Even speaking on technology in the classrooms, there are biases there when the people who are choosing whether they are going to provide money here or there when those people are not the ones in the classroom being affected by the lack of technology themselves. I felt like she just made really good points all throughout the video, but this was just the one that stuck out to me and I found more people need to think about. When buying something, examining something, or just thinking of laws or rules, anything like that, people should take time to stop and think, "Who made this? Why was it made? Who was it made for? And what type of bias or disadvantage is it holding towards some, and what advantages is it giving others." Once people start being more aware of what is going on around them is when people will want to start actively working for changes to be made.

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"Whether we think of ourselves in these terms or not, educators are cultural workers on the front lines of either reproducing the world as it is or empowering students to create it as it can and should be."- Dr. Benjamin

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Hearing that over a million classrooms dont have wifi access was really shocking to me. I remember getting new technology introduced into my classroom in middle school and high school, which was many years ago. I am surprised to hear that high of a number still.

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"In a world such as this, we can't talk about engineering the material world without also discussing the ongoing engineering of the social world, without careful attention to whose version of the 'good life' is being imagined, and whose is being ignored," -Ruha Benjamin.

This stood out to me because it puts into perspective how social differences, including the digital divide, are intertwined. Sometimes, the prosperity of one group directly hurts another.

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If funding from school comes from the government, how in the same state are there such differences in education quality? Shouldn't funds be allocated based off the need of the school ( laptops at every school before public schools start getting pools built in)?

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Without a Net: The Digital Divide in America

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Without a Net: The Digital Divide in America

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While watching the Verizon documentary, I had an ah-a moment while hearing 6th grader Amanda Acevedo's story. At her school, students had to share their technology with other classes so they would only have an allotted amount of time each day on their devices. When she would come home in the afternoons, she would use her mother's smartphone to type up her homework assignments since she did not have her own device. Amanda's story struck me because-fortunately-I never had to imagine doing my school work on a smartphone or not being able to do my homework for lack of technology in our home. My parents had technology in our home for my sister and I to use for educational purposes and when I reached middle school, I was given my own iPad for instructional/educational use by my school. Hearing Amanda's story made me realize that I grew up very fortunate because not everyone has the same access to technology as I did.

The Verizon documentary highlighted three main areas of struggle for schools across the country: hardware, connectivity, and teacher training.

Hardware

Technology skills/knowledge is ESSENTIAL in today’s world.

Every child should know how to operate a computer.

Technology is a given in most careers now-a-days, so students should be taught how to handle/operate technology (ex: computers).

Connectivity

Internet connection is like running water for a school…it’s also expensive.

How are schools supposed to teach technological skills to students when the wifi has a poor connection or continues to crash?

Teacher Training

LA Unified School District iPad program flop

Insufficient teacher training (2-3 days of training prior to the district wide distribution of iPads to students) led to iPads gathering dust.

None of the teachers knew how to properly integrate iPad usage into the curriculum/their lesson plans which eventually led to the fall through of LA Unified’s billion dollar deal with Apple and the suspension of the program.

60% of teachers feel they are inadequately prepared to use technology in the classroom.

A quote that stuck out to me in this video was that "if we don’t close the digital divide, our kids are going to get left behind in the global economy."

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"And we should acknowledge from the outset that engaging these issues is not for the faint of heart. This is a lifelong work with no magic fixes."- Dr. Ruha Benjamin

This quote really struck a cord with me regarding the current teaching climate. Teachers are expected to teach 20+ students every day with multiple factors impacting their instruction. The fact that some teachers still do not have something as simple as the necessary tools, such as up to date technology for their students, and are still expected to use it in lessons is a travesty. Video 1 shows just how challenging teaching can be when an educator wants to support their students to succeed but can not fully because of lack of resources.

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Incubate a Better World in the Minds & Hearts of Students

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Incubate a Better World in the Minds & Hearts of Students

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"Teachers--if actually unified and empowered--can change the direction of history." - Ruha Benjamin

I felt this quote deep in my chest. I truly believe that teachers are the foundation of our society. Without them, we would be lost. I have the utmost respect for teachers and the profession, which is one of the reasons why I chose a career in education.

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While watching the Ruha Benjamin's presentation she mentioned the use of stereotypes included within algorithm searches on the internet. Prior to the presentation, she spoke about us not only having to worry about the accessibility of technology, but to also be conscious of the design of technology. To this, I was a bit confused until the mentioning of algorithmic discrimination, in which this idea of being conscious about design makes more sense, which was something I did not necessarily think of as an intentional design flaw until now.

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"Good intentions are not enough."- Ruha Benjamin
As much as it would be wonderful if this were true, we must face scenarios of inequality with real life actions. It means creating change in a system that is failing, but not in the way of simply fixing certain aspects of that system that will, again, only benefit a portion of the population.

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There was a question at the beginning of Dr. Ruha's speech that she proposed. "How do we make our schools laboratories of democratic participation rather than sites where inequality is reproduced?" I agree with the urgency and vitality of this idea. Also, I think we are able to point out the primary inequalities and downfalls that lie in the education system. So we must ask ourselves HOW to change this. Ruha emphasizes the understanding that if teachers are unified and empowered, they can change this direction. She identifies the first step is to understand whose version of the good life is setting the standards as well as whose voices are being ignored. I also agree that starting early will make it easier to lay out a foundation for equality. Elementary schools are in an advantageous position.

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The presence of technology goes beyond the activity in the classroom. It goes beyond convenience and "our time." The student in Lower Marion High School says her hopes for the future are very technology dependent. She simply could not imagine life without it and states her aspirations and dreams would heavily differ in absence of technology. As this student works toward becoming an aerospace or environmental engineer, the senior at the other high school only asks for a good education so she can go to college. She sees no opportunity to excel in her current situation.

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"I am interested in aeronautics and engineering." This is something so cool to hear from a student, but due to the technology it can be a reality. Students across the country have the same dreams, but it's easy to see the difference it creates when students don't have access to the same materials

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I thought it was pretty alarming to think that school work might be required for students that don't have access to a computer or a stable internet connection. I have had to work from my i-phone in a pinch and I cannot imagine that being a regular occurrence. That is such an inefficient use of a student's time and its very unfortunate.

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"We need to shift teacher education from an instruction model to a coaching model, because thats whats needed in the 21st century."

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In the conclusion of this video the narrator asserts that the only way to bridge the technology divide is through a united front and I could not agree more. It is so important to have equal opportunity in our public schools around the country and if we work together in our communities and districts we will be able to prepare the next generation for what is to come.

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Dr. Benjamin mentions the ease with which our societies devalue the arts because it is easier to make a profit off of a petri dish than a poem is SPOT ON!

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I think that Dr. Benjamin is hard to disagree with on all fronts. However, I would venture to say that she is a bit idealistic to dream of a world where the politicians and changemakers play by the same zero-tolerance policy that we expect from our students in schools. That is not to say that I don't wish it could be that way, but the radical change that would have to come about to achieve that level of healthy community does in my eyes seem a bit unattainable at least in the near future.

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This inequity in funding based on property tax came up in recent discussions about systemic racism. My question is, what is or can be done to change this? How can we restructure a system that has been in place for so long and that has created such radical inequality?

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"All too often the final piece of the puzzle is missing, teacher training." I think this is an important thing to think about and address. As future teachers we want to encourage our students to be curious and think for themselves, and that means we need to provide them with the means to do so. This is where technology comes in. How can we expect our students to know how to use certain technology if we don't even know how to use it? Students look to their teachers when they have questions especially about things that are new to them. We must know how to use the technology we expect our students to use.