Bridging the Digital Divide through Schools

Abstract

The Internet has become increasingly an important source of information for pupils in learning, entertainment, sharing and exchanging experiences with other peers, meeting with adults and learning about other cultures. The Internet is a major force in the lives of school children and is no doubt having a tremendous influence on their reading habits and information seeking behaviour. With increased Internet connectivity however, concerns are being raised about the widening imbalances of access to ICTs between north information haves and the information have nots countries. This imbalance known as the digital divide has implications in terms of equity access to quality education in an electronic age. In Africa there are limited programmes that address in particular how schools can be equipped to benefit from the digital age and at the same time be used as an important instrument to bridge the digital divide. The concept digital divide was coined to describe the imbalance in access to information and communication technologies by different communities of people between different countries of the world. This phenomenon is today known to exist within individual countries, cities and even communities. Today schools are being seen as one of the most salient infrastructure that can be used to bridge the digital divide in our midst. This paper looks at developments in Africa aimed at bridging the digital divide through schools.