When schools closed last March, roughly 16 million U.S. K-12 students lacked access to a working device, reliable high-speed internet or both. In the months that followed, many states and school districts mobilized, using federal CARES Act funding, broadband discounts and partnerships with private companies to connect their students and enable online learning.

Those efforts have made a dent, according to an analysis from Common Sense, Boston Consulting Group and the Southern Education Foundation. As of December 2020, the number of students impacted by the digital divide has narrowed to 12 million.

This progress is “significant,” write the authors of a report that details the groups’ findings. But that’s still far too many students who remain unconnected or under-connected, especially as virtual learning continues in almost half of schools. What’s more, they write, is that the solutions devised in 2020 are “largely nonpermanent.”

“The majority of efforts since March 2020 are temporary, stop-gap measures,” according to the report. “In total, more than 75 percent of efforts will expire in the next one to three years based on current funding sources.”

Affecting nearly one-third of K-12 students in the U.S. today, “the digital divide predated the coronavirus pandemic and will persist beyond it if stakeholders do not seize the moment,” they write. Closing the gap for good will make learning more equitable, more flexible and more accessible, and will help break the cycle of poverty, the authors argue.

Read the full article about digital divide by Emily Tate at EdSurge.