distance learning benefits

 clearer that the digital divide is an economic issue.  The digital divide 
is as significant for poor whites in Appalachia as it is for inner-city blacks in 
Detroit and Native Americans on Arizona reservations.  More important, access 
to computers alone is an incomplete measure of the digital divide.  A growing 
chorus of community activists and educators are warning that the real digital 
divide isnt about access, but about relevance.  To truly bridge the divide, they 
argue, you need to send a different message about technology and its usefulness 
in peoples daily lives.  In short, a dearth of pertinent information, literacy 
barriers, and limited diversity of content are the biggest barriers to getting lower 
income users online.


Ferrell, Elizabeth (1998, May).  Poverty and Race:  Traffic Lights at the Information
Superhighway On-ramp.  Washington State University at Vancouver.  Retrieved 
October 8, 2001 from the World Wide Web: 
http://helium.vancouver.wsu.edu/~ferrell/ses_site/index.htm.

This Web site discusses the disparity of access between classes of people.  Citing 
a variety of sources, the report addresses several issues including poverty, 
education, employment, and equity.  Some of the solutions offered to minimize 
this disparity include endorsing former President Clintons Educational 
Technology Initiative, whose goal is to connect all classrooms to the Internet by 
the year 2000, and partnering schools with a variety of sponsors.


Garcia, Kimberly (2000, September).  Crossing the Digital Divide, Hispanic, 13(9).

Two recent surveys by private research firms suggest that the digital divide may 
be closing for Latinos.  Results of a third, more comprehensive but dated, Census 
Bureau survey, are less optimistic.








21


Griffith, Ross (1999, April).  Connecting Students and Faculty through Technology, 
Collaboration, and Globalization at Wake Forest University.  The Technology Source. 
Retrieved October 4, 2001 from the World Wide Web:  (http://horizon.unc.edu/TS/).

This case study highlights Wake Forest Universitys strategic plan to provide all 

	

	

		

			

				

					

						





						

							
								
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