Giving Compass' Take:

• EdSurge reports on a problem in the digital learning space: Many students — particularly minorities and those in rural areas — don't have sufficient internet access to complete assignments at home.

• Is this more of a technology problem or an equity issue? The answer is a bit of both, and leaders in the sector should look at some of the solutions being proposed, including installing WiFi on school buses.

• Here's more about the challenges of setting up high-speed internet in rural schools.


While most schools in the U.S. boast broadband access these days, and plenty of assignments require the internet, when students head home, their connections are not quite in lockstep with schools.

Thus, there is a homework gap — the problem created when students who use digital learning in class can’t get online at home to finish up their schoolwork.

This topic has gained some attention in recent years, as the mission to connect all U.S. schools to high-speed broadband nears completion. Many schools are left with two options: keep moving forward with digital learning — and risk leaving some students behind — or keep homework assignments offline, holding back the students who might otherwise benefit from software and tools available on the internet.

The issue is pervasive — and it disproportionately affects underrepresented minorities and students in rural areas. A report published earlier this year from the Institute of Education Sciences, the independent research arm of the U.S. Department of Education, found that 80 percent of 8th graders use a computer at home to complete their schoolwork during the week. But 18 percent of all students in remote rural areas have no access to the internet or only a dial-up connection, compared to seven percent of students in suburban areas. Within rural areas, students of color are especially disadvantaged: 41 percent of black students lack access, versus 13 percent of white students.

Read the full article about trying to close the "homework gap" by Emily Tate at EdSurge.