Growing up in the dial-up era, slow internet connections were a fact of life, but as we have become more and more dependent upon web-based services, such problems have grown in seriousness.  A recent study from Michigan State University highlights how internet connectivity impacts the educational prospects of rural children.

“Students without internet access and those who depend on a cell phone for their only access are half a grade point below those with fast access,” the researchers say. “This gap has ripple effects that may last an entire life.”

Disconnected

The researchers gathered data on both student internet access and their academic performance, with data collected from 21 schools in total, featuring nearly 3,300 students.  The data revealed that the most socioeconomically disadvantaged students, and those who lived in the most rural locations, were least likely to have good internet connectivity at home.

For instance, just under half of students from rural areas had high-speed internet access, compared to over three quarters of those in suburban areas.  What’s more, among those with poor access, a third didn’t have a computer at home at all.

This correlated with reduced desire to attend college or university, with those with good internet access tending to have stronger digital skills, which correlated with strong performance on standardized tests.

“Digital skills are related to proficiency in a range of domains beyond simple technology use, including language and computation. Better home internet access contributes to diverse technology use and higher digital skills,” the researchers say.

Students who were forced to rely on their cell phone, or who had no internet access at all, suffered from a similar sized skills gap in digital skills as that between 8th and 11th grade students.

“We found that students with even modestly lower digital skills perform a lot worse on the SAT test,” the researchers explain. “We measured digital skills on a scale from 0 to 64. The average score was around a 30, but a student who performed modestly lower in digital skills scored about 7 percentiles lower nationally on the SAT. That is true for standardized test scores across all grades, not just the SAT.”

A digital divide

This digital divide was consistent across a wide range of other socioeconomic factors, including race, family income and parental education.  The data was able to encapsulate students from both wealthy and poor backgrounds who suffered from a lack of internet access, in many instances simply due to a lack of availability in their remote location.

For those with a data connection via their phone, slow speeds or caps on data hobbled their attempts to successfully engage with web-based content.

“It is wrong to assume that since most have a smartphone, students have sufficient access,” the researchers say. “It turns out that this is not the case. Those who have only cell phone access perform as poorly as those who have no internet access at all.”

Obtaining digital skills is something of a pre-requisite for many modern careers, and the authors believe that this digital divide could have significant repercussions for the careers of students.

“Those who have better broadband access at home also have higher digital skills overall,” the authors conclude. “Those digital skills then position individuals better for lifelong careers. They are better positioned for post-secondary education and are more intent on entering STEM careers, which often pay higher salaries.”