Exploring the Digital Divide and the African American Achievement Gap in Online Education
This week, you will practice summarizing and critiquing articles by developing an annotated bibliography. Select articles that are related to your dissertation research topic from differing points of view.
Using your knowledge from this week's reading and research, develop a well-formatted summary of each author's work. Some sources may be longer than others. A paragraph is sufficient as long as you have covered the content. Usually, two or three paragraphs are needed. However, this is a summary that can be quickly scanned to understand the points of the content.
Assignment Instructions:
Develop an annotated bibliography in the correct format adding seven articles.
Include the main points of the article and what the author is conveying to the reader.
Clearly identify how this article is related to your dissertation research topic.
Each article review should be two to three paragraphs plus your conclusion.
Include a title page and reference page.
Length: 7-10 pages
References: Include a minimum of 7 scholarly resources.
Exploring the Digital Divide and the African American Achievement Gap in Online Education
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Exploring the Digital Divide and the African American Achievement Gap in Online Education
Francis, D. V., & Weller, C. E. (2022). Economic inequality, the digital divide, and remote learning during COVID-19. The Review of Black Political Economy, 49(1), 41-60.
The authors believe that education can disrupt the chain of wealth inequality by offering enriched educational opportunities for all. Such an education system is critical in allowing students from low-wealth backgrounds have access to the opportunities that such an education offers. However, the researchers believe that if the education system remains unchecked, it can uphold the intergenerational cycle of wealth inequality, especially where wealth is a major determinant of access to the highest quality of education. In the paper, the investigators demonstrate that the COVID-19 pandemic continues to widen the existing racial wealth inequality. The pandemic has forced schools to shift to online learning. Unfortunately, the researchers observed that most of the students of color, including the African Americans, have fewer opportunities to participate in remote learning during COVID-19 compared to their white counterparts. The students of color have less reliable access to the Internet and electronic devices than white learners.
The article is relevant because it demonstrates why the widening digital gap adversely affects African Americans’ online education. The inability of African American families to afford internet connectivity and electronic devices like their white counterparts is a major concern. The article brings up the idea of wealth inequality as a major contributor to the digital divide. This is instrumental in demonstrating that the inability of African American families to meet the demands of online learning is forcing their children to have less effective opportunities for online learning. Indeed, the COVID-19 pandemic has come at a cost for learners. For higher-income families, online learning for their children has proceeded normally. However, the same benefit has not accrued to African American children. The article demonstrates that wealth inequality between African American and white families has made accessing quality online education challenging for the former.
Graham, R., & Smith, D. T. (2011). Internet as digital practice: Examining differences in African American Internet usage. Future Internet, 3(3), 185-203.
The authors investigate the differences within the African American population regarding internet use in the study. The investigators consider the differences between the haves and have-nots. They indicate that the haves groups can acquire and utilize ICTs like the Internet, mobile phone technology, and various software applications. For the have-nots, such benefits are not readily available, adversely affecting their ability to take advantage of technological advancements. The investigators seek to determine the frequency of Internet use by African Americans relative to other racial groups. The results indicate that African Americans use the Internet for basic...