Social disparities in adolescents' educational ICT use at home: how digital and educational inequalities interact

Abstract

This chapter focuses on differences in the use of information and communication technologies (ICT) for educational purposes at home between students from different social strata. It combines the literatures on digital inequalities and educational inequalities to develop a theoretical framework for the explanation of social inequality in educational ICT use at home. An overview of how inequalities in educational and ICT activities outside of school are theorised in both literatures reveals some remarkable similarities. Two main determinants can be identified in both research traditions: students are more likely to engage in an educational or ICT activity if they have the opportunity (access, skills) and are motivated to do so. Social inequality in educational ICT use at home is therefore regarded as the result of differences in educational and/or ICT opportunities and motivations. These conceptual considerations will be illustrated with empirical examples using the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) 2018 data. Results show that the difference in educational ICT use between students with higher- and lower-educated parents disappears when educational and ICT resources at home and the academic and ICT motivations of the students are controlled. Educational and ICT resources and motivations interact in a way that the educational as well as the ICT aspects are necessary conditions for students to engage in educational ICT activities at home.