Digital Equity in Education

With approximately 50,000 students, 92 languages, and a 30% transiency rate, the Anchorage School District (ASD) faces unique challenges in preparing students for the 21st century. ASD utilizes a number of strategies, many of which are technology dependent, to meet the needs of its diverse student population.

 

The foundational beliefs supporting our initiatives include the following:

  • School should be engaging, challenging, and relevant for all students
  • Students need global access to information and materials
  • Learning is a collaborative process that involves the community
  • Educational opportunities are not confined by the school calendar
  • Access to technology must be equitable for all students
  • Teachers should model the meaningful use of technology

Bandwidth constraints limit ASD’s ability to provide an optimal 21st century learning environment today. While the district is fortunate to have outstanding educators and a unique array of schools and alternative programs, teachers and students are frequently frustrated by the limitations imposed by connectivity that is greatly inferior to school districts of comparable size in the Lower 48.

ASD has prioritized several initiatives that would benefit tremendously from increased broadband capacity:

Differentiated Instruction

Differentiated Instruction has long been a critical goal for educators as they strive to meet the needs of every student. Recent developments in technology have made this goal much more attainable. For the past several years, ASD has piloted several digital resources that individualize instruction, allowing students to work at their own pace on curriculum targeted precisely at the appropriate level. As the number of these curricular resources increases and as their implementation throughout the district becomes more critical, the bandwidth required to ensure ongoing access throughout the district increases proportionately if not exponentially.

Universal & Equitable Access

A major goal for ASD is to provide universal and equitable access to technology resources throughout the district. With over 100 schools spread across a large geographic area, it is difficult for the district to provide enough computers at every site to meet the academic needs of students. However, with the introduction of netbooks and other powerful mobile devices, the prospect of 1:1 computing is rapidly becoming much more feasible, and the need for our infrastructure to support this growth is becoming more and more critical.

24/7 Anytime, Anywhere Learning

ASD recognizes the need to provide students with learning opportunities outside the constraints of the normal school day and calendar. While the district has been delivering online classes for several years, we are working to expand online offerings to include all high school courses required for graduation as well as high interest electives. In addition to full credit online courses, ASD provides professional development for all teachers so they can leverage the benefits of hybrid instruction, social networking, and cloud computing. The district is in the process of adopting Google Apps as a central element of this initiative.

Mentoring & Collaboration

Because students need to prepare to compete in a global economy, the ability to collaborate on projects with students and community members from around the world is an important component of a relevant 21st century education. ASD recognizes the need for both synchronous and asynchronous technologies, but bandwidth constraints greatly limit what is currently possible in Anchorage. Due to our unique geography, it would be of great benefit not only for our students, but for their partners worldwide, if we were better equipped to employ video-conferencing and tele-mentoring technologies for project-based learning.