Future Ready Learning

Internet connectivity.
Although unprecedented resources are available to reach this goal, still significant
work remains for many schools and districts. Organizations that are part of the
Future Ready network, including EducationSuperHighway and CoSN, are committed
to supporting schools throughout this transition.
Connectivity at Home
Learning does not stop at the end of the school day, and access to digital learning
resources should not either. According to a report from the Council of Economic
Advisers, approximately 55 percent of low-income children under the age of 10 in
the United States lack Internet access at home. 1
The LIFE Center’s Lifelong and Lifewide Diagram by LIFE Center is licensed under a Creative
Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0. (LIFE Center: Stevens, R. Bransford, J. &
Stevens, A., 2005)
These statistics along with consideration of the amount of time spent out of
school have given rise to concerns about a “homework gap” between students
whose Internet connections at home are slow or non-existent—a problem disproportionately
common in rural and underserved communities—and those who
have home connections with adequate speed. They also give credence to the view
that connectivity at home for students is an essential component of a 21st century
education—not something merely nice to have—if we are to avoid exacerbating
pre-existing inequities in unconnected homes. 2
Educational leaders should work to ensure learners have access to connectivity
and devices when they leave school grounds so that they are not limited in their
ability to experience high-quality connected learning fully. To support schools in
this effort, organizations such as EveryoneOn focus on providing highly subsidized
Internet access to low-income households. In addition, the U.S. Department
of Housing and Urban Development launched ConnectHome in 2015 to focus on
bringing high-speed Internet to low-income communities so everyone can
CONNECTHOME
ConnectHome is a U.S.
Department of Housing and
Urban Development program
focused on increasing access to
high-speed Internet for low-income
households. The pilot
program launched in 27 cities and
one tribal nation in the summer of
2015, initially reaching more than
275,000 low-income households
and nearly 200,000 children.
As part of the program, Internet
service providers, nonprofits, and
the private sector will offer broadband
access, technical training,
digital literacy programs, and
devices for residents in assisted
housing units. 3 For more information,
visit http://connecthome.
hud.gov/.
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