The gap between the number of whites and minorities who own
computers and use the Internet is widening, but schools and libraries
might prove to be the great equalizers in the quest for technological
literacy, says a U.S. Department of Commerce report.
The report -- "Falling
Through the Net: Defining the Digital Divide" -- found dramatic
gains in the percentage of Americans embracing technology. But
whites, the report says, are far more likely to own a home computer
and have access to the Internet than blacks or Hispanics.
Commerce researchers found that 47 percent of white households
owned a computer, compared to 23 percent for blacks and 26 percent
for Hispanics. They also found that 30 percent of white households
had Internet access, more than double the rate for blacks (11
percent) and Hispanics (13 percent).
The nation needs to "redouble [its] outreach efforts, especially
directed at the information-disadvantaged," the report concludes.
Already, schools are proving they can help narrow the technology
gap. While only 20 percent of whites reported using the Internet
at public school facilities, nearly 27 percent of blacks and 35
percent of Hispanics said they access the Internet through school
computers.
Public libraries also proved to be more helpful to blacks and
Hispanics than to whites. Roughly 7 percent of whites reported
using the Internet at libraries, compared to 14 percent of blacks
and 11 percent of Hispanics.
Family income plays a dramatic role in Internet access. The
report found that households with incomes of $75,000 or more are
20 times more likely to have access to the Internet, and nine
times more likely to have a computer, than families at the lowest
income levels. When asked why they lacked Internet access, the
report says, roughly 17 percent of households said it was "too
expensive."
Copyright and distance education
A recently released U.S. Copyright Office report is proposing
that the nation's copyright laws be amended to accommodate the
realities of distance learning. Included in the "Report
on Copyright and Digital Distance Education," published in
May, are recommendations that would make it clear that the doctrine
of fair use applies to both online and traditional classrooms.
"Distance education in the United States today is a vibrant
and burgeoning field," the report states. However, it says copyright
laws need to be adjusted to accommodate the new technology.
For example, a portion of the 1976 copyright law concerning
distance education does not authorize the type of reproduction
and distribution that takes place in the course of digital transmissions.
"In addition," the report says, "students who choose to take a
distance course without specific circumstances that prevent their
attendance in classrooms may not qualify as eligible recipients."
The report seeks to balance the needs of educators, who see
distance learning as a tremendous educational opportunity, and
the concerns of publishers, who fear profit losses from widespread
pirating of copyrighted material. The report says that one way
educators should deter piracy is to require that students use
passwords to access course material. It also emphasizes that only
nonprofit institutions should be offered exemptions from copyright
restrictions, as is now the case.
"The report is remarkably comprehensive, given the short six-months
time frame imposed by Congress," according to an online news release
from the American Library Association. "And the recommendations
seem well-balanced in recommending an updating of current copyright
law exemptions for distance education, but with safeguards to
respond to proprietor concerns."
But a representative from the Motion Picture Association of
American said that the report's recommendations, if enacted, "could
have a profound, adverse impact on copyright owners." Testifying
before a congressional committee, attorney Fritz E. Attaway Sr.
said, "The consequences in the digital environment of unauthorized
reproduction, distribution, and modifications of copyrighted works
could be catastrophic."
Congress moves to mandate Internet filters
Schools receiving the federal E-Rate discount for Internet connections
would be required to install filtering software to block out pornography
if a bill passed by the U.S. House of Representatives becomes
law.
In June, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Children's
Internet Protection Act as an amendment to the Juvenile
Justice Reform Act of 1999. The bill would require schools
to install filtering software to be eligible for the E-Rate discount.
The Senate is also considering a similar
bill, which the Senate Commerce Committee approved in June.
The legislation would require schools and libraries, as a condition
of eligibility for E-Rate funding, to certify with the Federal
Communications Commission that they are using a technology to
filter or block objectionable material on the Internet.
Education and library groups objected to the measures, saying
the bills impose a costly, unfunded requirement and ignore the
variety of approaches being taken in localities around the country.
Opposition to the bills also came from civil liberties advocates
who said the measures would violate the First Amendment's free
speech protection. Many types of filtering software mistakenly
block many harmless sites containing information about health,
politics, and art, they said. (See "Censorware,"
January 1998.)
"This type of arbitrary censorship is a blatant violation of
the First Amendment when mandated by the federal government,"
a coalition of opposing groups said in a letter to the Commerce
Committee.
Senate Commerce Committee Chairman John McCain, R-Ariz., rejected
the criticism and argued that filtering software is inexpensive
and necessary to protect children. "No issue is more important
than protecting our children," McCain told Reuters, adding that
his bill would "provide a baseline of protection."
ED looks at technology effectiveness
 Now
that most U.S. schools are equipped with computers and most classrooms
have Internet access, attention is shifting from the question,
"How do we get technology?" to the question, "How effective is
the technology we've got?"
Education technology specialists and policymakers tried to come
up with some answers this past summer at a national conference
on education technology convened by Education Secretary Richard
W. Riley.
Educators "must not assume that everything that employs technology
is going to be successful. That is why evaluation is so important,"
Riley told participants at The
Secretary's National Conference on Educational Technology: Evaluating
the Effectiveness of Technology. "A critical part of using
technology effectively is the ability to measure its effectiveness."
Some school districts have created problems for themselves by
putting computers into classrooms without showing teachers how
to use them, failing to factor in future costs, and rushing to
install equipment and programs that might be obsolete or too advanced
for their schools' needs.
But the conference also heard reports of promising projects
that are improving teacher training and student achievement. Studies
from West Virginia and Idaho indicated that students using computers
in their lessons are improving test scores and other performance
measures in math and reading. Other success stories were also
featured:
* In rural southeastern Utah, the Aneth Community School on
the Navajo Nation Reservation relied on a few computers scattered
around in classrooms and offices until 1995. Today, the K-6 school
has a new computer lab, a computer and color printer in each of
its 41 classrooms, and a distance learning project that uses a
microwave tower to provide students with full-motion video, voice,
and data connections.
* In Boston, each of the city's 130 public schools has a "starter
network" (computer lab plus terminals in the library, principal's
office, and four to eight classrooms) connected to a network based
at the district office -- making it the first large urban school
district in the country to have networks and high-speed Internet
access in every school. The Boston district, which has one computer
for every six students, also offers free on-site courses to teachers,
principals, and other staff members to help them achieve new district
standards for teaching with technology.
* In Oswego, N.Y., nearly all of the district's 415 teachers
get 27 hours of training on Internet access and 30 hours on basic
computer skills. The district's 5,600 students -- nearly 40 percent
of whom live in poverty -- can take grade- and subject-specific
practice quizzes and play educational games to improve their skills.
Julie Burger, a second-grade teacher, has completed nearly 200
hours of technology training, and her students create reports
using digital cameras.
"There has been a dramatic change in how much better and faster
my students learn with our technology," she said.
Good doggy
 At
last, a dog that doesn't need a pooper-scooper. A robotic puppy
named AIBO arrived
this summer in a litter of 5,000 from Sony's research and development
lab in Tokyo.
Sony claims AIBO -- pronounced I-boh, which translates to "pal"
in Japanese and stands for Artificial Intelligence Robot in English
-- "can learn, grow, and make its own decisions based on its environment
and communication with its owner."
 Nourished
by lithium ion batteries, AIBO hears through two stereo microphones,
sees through a 180,000-pixel camera hidden in his nose, and feels
through a touch sensor on his head. If AIBO reminds you of somebody
you know, it might be Robokoneko, a robotic cat developed at Genobyte,
Inc., in Boulder, Colo. (See "Here
Kitty, Kitty, Kitty," June 1999.)
Available for $2,500 in the United States and sold out in Japan,
AIBO can bark, respond to (musical) commands, and do things Fido
never dreamed of: If AIBO's in a good mood -- he has six emotions
-- he might start singing a little robotic ditty or even dancing
the hula.
High-tech kids, low-tech tests
A new study from Boston College questions whether low-tech tests
-- those taken with paper and pencil -- are failing to measure
the full knowledge and skills of computer-savvy students.
The Center for the Study
of Testing, Evaluation, and Educational Policy at Boston College
compared groups of students in Worcester, Mass., who were taking
essay-style exams. Half the students were randomly assigned to
answer questions using pencils and paper; the rest used computers.
Before the test, researchers asked students about their computer
skills and gave them typing tests to evaluate their keyboard proficiency.
Study results showed that for students accustomed to writing
on a computer, test questions answered electronically were substantially
better than those written by hand. Students who were the most
computer-proficient -- typing at least 20 words a minute -- were
the most negatively affected by taking a pencil-and-paper test,
according to Boston College researcher Mike Russell. In fact,
the study found that even the weakest students who knew how to
use computers performed better when they used the machines.
"We're making kids more accustomed to working on computers and
then turning around and testing on paper and pencil," said Russell.
"When those tests involve open-ended questions, we're not really
giving our students a fair chance."
However, the Boston College researchers found the opposite effect
also occurred: Slower typists who used computers scored lower
than their low-tech counterparts who took paper and pencil tests.
The study did not examine the impact of computers on multiple-choice
tests.
Constructivists online
 Is
it the sage on the stage or the guide by the side? Teachers who
believe their role is to be a facilitator rather than a lecturer
are more likely to use the Internet in their classrooms, according
to a recent study by Henry Jay Becker, an education professor
at the University of California, Irvine.
The study suggests that teachers' philosophy of instruction
influences how and how often they use the Internet with their
students. Teachers who subscribe to a teaching philosophy that
favors student participation over lecture were more likely to
use the Internet in the classroom. In fact, about 65 percent of
those with the strongest "progressive" leanings considered the
Internet essential to a classroom. Only 34 percent of teachers
with more traditional teaching styles and views considered the
Internet essential.
"Teachers' basic beliefs and pedagogical practices feed into
whether they use the Internet," Becker told the New York Times.
"The teachers that believe in focusing on what I call constructivism
... are much more apt to use the Internet."
Becker's report, "Internet
Use by Teachers: Conditions of Professional Use and Teacher-Directed
Student Use," is based on a survey of 2,251 teachers in grades
four through 12. Most teachers reported making some use of the
Internet in their professional activities. A majority of the teachers
(68 percent) use the Internet to find information resources for
use in their lessons, and more than a quarter of the teachers
reported doing this at least weekly. Nearly 40 percent use e-mail
to communicate with teachers at other schools. Teachers reported
that web searching was the third most common use of computers
by students at schools, after word processing and using CD-ROMs.
The report, funded by grants from the National Science Foundation
and the U.S. Department of Education, is the first of a dozen
studies Becker hopes to release this year based on the survey
data and related research.
Celebrate techies
 Get
out your pom-poms. The first annual Techies
Day is just around the corner.
Oct. 5 has been set aside for a national Techies Day that focuses
on technology professionals and their achievements. The hoopla
will include a Techie Team of the Year contest, public recognition
programs, private corporate celebrations, and a school outreach
program designed to generate more interest in careers in technology.
And not a moment too soon: The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
predicts the demand for technology professionals will double over
the next four years.
"We think part of the reason there's such a shortage of technology
professionals may be that their overall contributions are too
often overlooked," said Doug Berg, CEO of techies.com. "Techies
Day will be a public tip of the hat and thanks for a job well
done."
Schools can tip their hats, too. "Technology continues to have
a significant impact in enhancing education," said Linda Roberts,
special adviser for educational technology at the U.S. Department
of Education. "It's important that schools celebrate the achievements
of the technology coordinators and heighten student awareness
of future opportunities."
Several technology organizations and companies are sponsoring
the event, which was announced at the National Education Computing
Conference in June. A web site aims to whip up more enthusiasm,
helping schools find speakers, plan open houses, and "create a
festive atmosphere that fosters awareness, attention, and enthusiasm"
for tech careers.
A Techies Day Educators Kit, scheduled to be up on the web site
by late summer, includes ideas for Techie Day activities, certificates
for students and teachers, sample press releases, and other goodies
-- everything, it seems, but the pom-poms.
Art for kids' sake
Children's museums just ain't what they used to be. San Francisco's
new Zeum combines the creativity
of the arts with the can-do of technology. Designed for ages 8
to 18, Zeum -- pronounced "Zee-uhm" and located in a
cake-shaped building atop the Moscone Convention Center -- gives
kids the raw materials and gadgetry to produce everything from
claymations (animated characters molded out of clay) to their
own TV shows.
Thanks to a grant from the U.S. Commerce Department, Zeum is
also training teachers and developing projects for six San Francisco
schools. Spokeswoman Suzanne Tuchler says Zeum soon hopes to reach
teachers, parents, and kids beyond San Francisco with "digital
tool kits" on its web site.
Y2K OK? With Jan. 1, 2000, just four months off, school districts
have made progress in their Y2K efforts but still have a way to
go. A study by the U.S. Department of Education and the National
School Boards Association found that 42 percent of K-12 districts
and agencies have written plans for achieving Y2K compliance; 28
percent say all critical systems are now Y2K-compliant; and 24 percent
say they have completed their contingency planning. (See "RU
Y2K OK?" March 1999.)
ACCELERATING ACCESS Global agreement on a new telephone
standard for a system known as ADSL, or Asymmetric Digital Subscriber
Line, will vastly speed up links to the Internet. Several U.S.
companies are already offering the new standard, which enables
speeds at least 30 times faster than current top-of-the-line modems
over ordinary copper telephone lines. Home computers and distance-education
programs are likely markets. (See "DSL
in Davis County," September 1998.)
LADIES AND GENTLEMEN If you're called on to make a presentation
on education technology and don't know where to begin, you might
start with "Learning with Technology: A Presenter's Toolkit for
Leaders." Developed by EDvancenet,
a partnership of the National School
Boards Foundation, the Consortium
for School Networking, and MCI
WorldCom, the toolkit includes online presentation materials,
case studies, an assessment tool for evaluating the status of
technology in your state or district, and tips for a winning presentation.
For a print supplement to the online materials, contact EDvancenet
Manager Robin Kaczka.
SEEK AND YE SHALL FIND But not necessarily, if you're
using an Internet search engine. A study
by the NEC Research Institute has found that search engines index
only a small percentage of the 600 million or so public web pages.
The top search engines, the study says, are Northern Light, covering
16 percent of the web, and Snap and AltaVista, which cover 15.5
percent. At the bottom are Lycos (2.5 percent) and Euroseek (2.2
percent). (See "Fishing the
Net," January 1999.)
FOR THE GIRLS A bipartisan bill called the Educating
America's Girls Act has been introduced in the House by Reps.
Dale Kildee, D-Mich.; Nancy Johnson, R-Conn.; Lynn Woolsey, D-Calif.;
and Connie Morella, R-Md. The act, based on findings from the
American Association of University Women Educational Foundation's
1998 report Gender Gaps, would require schools to train teachers
to address the different learning needs of girls in technology.
It also addresses participation in school athletics, sexual harassment,
and abuse.
ONLINE PARTNERS Want to improve your schools' electronic
collaborations? The Northeast & Islands Regional Educational
Laboratory has some advice for you in a publication called "Electronic
Collaboration: A Practical Guide for Educators." The guide
explains various types of online collaborations, lists resources,
gives tips for moderating projects, and features an 11-step process
for making online collaborative projects successful.
E-Wire is prepared with Associated Press (AP) reports.
|
