Thinking Outside the (Bricks-and-Mortar) Box(es): Using Cyberspace Technology to Reconceptualize Schooling and Community in the Face of Resegregation

As the 50th anniversary of the landmark Brown v. Board of Education decision arrives, a notably gesellschaftliche (individualist, freedom-oriented, rationalist) paradigm in the education policy agenda prevails. That is to say, in the wake of a series of Supreme Court decisions and the proliferation of publicly funded, ethnocentric charter schools in the past few decades, this country has moved away from Brown\u27s celebrated ideals and closer to the old idea of separate but equal. Furthermore, the disconnect is occurring along racial and cultural lines. Thus, if we are to achieve the benefits of diversity in schooling and create a more gemeinschaftliche (communitarian, help-oriented, democratic) orientation in education, we must think outside of the box; we must think digitally. The Internet as an embodiment of multiple forms of computer-mediated communications is a notably communal space imbued with gemeinschaftliche properties. Thus, to the traditional forms of schooling, we should look to add the community-building nature of computer-mediated communications to create virtual learning communities that bring together young people of different racial, cultural, economic and/or geographic identifications

Digital Equity in Education: A Multilevel Examination of Differences in and Relationships between Computer Access, Computer Use and State-level Technology Policies

Using data from the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) state assessment and a survey of state-level technology policies, this study examined digital equity in education as a multilevel organizational phenomenon with data from 70,382 students in 3,479 schools and 40 states. Students in rural schools or schools with higher percentages of African American students were likely to have less access to computers. With respect to computer use, girls and students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch were more likely to use computers more frequently when computers are available in the classroom. With respect to relationships between computer access and computer use, having computers available in a lab increases the likelihood of higher levels of computer use. The results suggested that no more than 5% of the variance in computer access can be attributed to state factors, and less than 1% of the variance in computer use was between states. The findings suggested that where student technology standards are integrated into subject-area standards, computer use was likely lower than in other states. In states where pre-service teachers must meet technology-related requirements to receive their teaching credential and states where funds earmarked for technology are distributed as competitive grants, computer use was likely to be higher

Mind the Gaps: Exploring the Use of Technology to Facilitate Parental Involvement, Particularly for Historically Underserved Populations

Decades of research establishes positive associations between parental involvement and a number of important student outcomes, including student achievement. Furthermore, a number of technological innovations make facilitating parental involvement more possible than ever. Those possibilities, however, require varying levels of technological sophistication and infrastructure developments in the homes and communities. That a well-documented digital divide exists between low-income and more-affluent communities means that students and families who live in low-income communities--generally, people of color--can be denied access to opportunities for meaningful involvement in and engagement with the schools. To avoid creating an opportunity gap, school leaders must therefore understand and work with the families and communities whom they serve as they move toward technological facilitation of home-school-community connections

Here, There, and Everywhere: A Review of DIY U by Anya Kamenetz

Book Review of DIY U: Edupunks, Edupreneurs, and the Coming Transformation of Higher Education by Anya Kamenetz