Participate 3.1.1 Access to the Digital Community Quest

   


I enjoyed the video, and especially agree with the man being interviewed, who said that "information is power" and the internet is the path to information, thereby the path to power and success.  I would certainly like to see the existing digital gap close so everyone could reach full potential in learning and using the internet.  Unfortunately, there are many students who do not have access to any technology once they leave the school grounds and this impedes student learning through the use of technology, disrupts the individualized learning opportunities provided by the after school online environment, and creates a gap between the students that discourages some of the new and engaging ways of learning.  In the past, I also thought that the main obstacle to digital resource access was simply no home internet or hardware.  This is, in fact, only one challenge that educators face as they try to make sure that the gap is closed when trying to use digital resources.  There are many physical disabilities that tend to exclude learners if web accessibility is not considered and implemented. Screen readers and other auditory programs can be used to help those with visual disabilities, captions, transcripts, graphics and other helpful programs can be used to assist those with auditory disabilities, voice-controlled software, special keyboards, and methods for skipping over long data sources can help close the gap for those with motor issues, just to name a few.  Simply positioning of the computer, keyboard, or monitor may be enough to make the difference for some students, using stickers on the keys also helps those with visual disabilities, adapting the mouse by adding a button, or colored sticker for left and right buttons can be a deal-breaker for some.  Enlarging print, using talking picture frames and talking dictionaries, captioning, hyper linked multimedia, and even simple calculators can also create an equitable and successful learning environment for digital research.  Effective use of assistive technologies can make the difference between successful and unsuccessful educational experiences for students with disabilities (Cennamo,150).