Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, problems with online resources are no longer foreign concepts for anyone in the United States. Currently, twenty-three percent of Americans still do not have access to at home internet. This need for the expansion of internet access across states is now becoming fully recognized by legislatures across the country, seeking to mitigate the digital divide’s impact on their communities. My research seeks to draw attention to Indiana districts that have the highest need for broadband infrastructure by showcasing the connection between demographic variables, broadband access, and standardized test passing rates.
Within the realm of educational inequality, unequal access to digital resources is a relatively new area of literature. The U.S. Census only started adding technology related survey questions in 2014, making it hard for longitudinal studies to be conducted regarding students’ access to resources at home and their corresponding effects on their education. This, however, does not mean that there is no data to be analyzed or that there have been no studies conducted in this subfield of education. Most of these studies found that, much like nutrition or recreational activities, internet access or internet usage have no direct impact on educational outcomes, like grades, but students who have more access to the internet and better digital skills tended to score higher on standardized tests.
These findings led me to the idea to compare standardized test scores in Indiana 10th grade students to the corresponding U.S. Census survey data on home access to broadband within each district. After conducting my analysis, I discovered a few things to be true.
- Racial variables have virtually no significant correlation to standardized test passing rates
Unlike most research about educational success gaps and the digital divide, my research found that there was no significant correlation between passing rates and race variables, especially when examining broadband’s relationship to passing rates. This is an interesting finding and would be an interesting area for further research regarding the links between race and income and how those educational success gaps have changed over the years.
2. Broadband has a high correlation to standardized test passing rates, when income is not factored in
When income is not used as a control variable, I found that broadband had a strong correlation to passing rates. That is as passing rates in a school district increased by one percent, access to broadband also increased by about .233 percent. This supports my theory that broadband is a factor that impacts educational outcomes. However, once income was added as a control variable, broadband lost its significance in correlation with passing rates. This finding led me to my last major finding, and arguably my most important one.
3. Broadband has a more significant correlation to income than it does to race
The most interesting correlation I found with my data was the extreme significant correlation between broadband access and income levels. As people’s income increased, so did their access to broadband. While this was suggested in the literature, it was important to my findings to see the strength of this correlation. This means that alongside rural communities, the broadband infrastructure in lower income areas needs to be examined.
My findings are not ground-breaking by any means, but rather further emphasize the need for broadband infrastructure expansion in areas of lower income in Indiana. Lack of access to broadband not only impact’s people’s connection to the rest of the world, but also their ability to succeed in the classroom. It is my hope that my research can be used as a tool for school district representatives to advocate for the needs of their community, and more specifically their students.
Further understanding of my research and findings can be found in my paper.
Maggie Reeves is a senior at Indiana University studying Law and Public Policy and Informatics planning to graduate in May 2022. Following graduation, Maggie will be joining the workforce as a Consultation Analyst in the Metro Washington D.C. area. She would like to thank Professors Ashlyn Nelson and Dave Warren for their help as her advisors.
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