Immediacy on the Web/page 4
Immediacy on the Web: Narrowing the Digital Divide
Technological competency is becoming an essential requirement of industrialized
countries’ educational systems in the emerging Information Age. Educators acknowledge that
students completing their college education need the skills to operate and communicate via
computer-based systems if they are to survive and thrive in a society dominated by technology.
The increased use of computer-based technologies throughout higher education means that
students must bring, or acquire, technology skills for use during their educational experiences if
they hope to succeed. While web-based distance education (DE) courses are becoming more
common at the university level, computer-mediated communication (CMC)
1
is used in an
increasing number of technology-intensive (TI) onsite courses as well.
However, students entering college may view the opportunities to engage technology in
their education with a range of attitudes. Those who have had no or little access to computers and
the Internet likely are less skilled and less experienced and thus unfamiliar with the procedures
and social practices associated with these technologies. Hence, they likely have lower levels of
computer literacy (Hawkins, 1997). Concern about those left behind in the Information Age has
prompted a debate over what is known as the “digital divide.” Research indicates that while
those who have access to computer technologies and guidance in developing their skills can
accelerate their technological competency development, those without access or guidance fall
further behind (Digital Divide Network 2000; NTIA, 1999). Policies, programs, and funding
have been aimed at identifying and implementing ways to narrow the divide, but the problem
persists (Cooper, 2002; NTIA, 1999).
Convention