7. Classroom tech might be stuck in the 20th century
While tablets, laptops, and all kinds of educational software are being implemented in classrooms across the country, some Americans simply can’t afford that kind of technology. Teachers might not be able to afford to train themselves on how to integrate tech into lesson plans. Students (and their families) might not have computers at home to keep up. School districts might not be able to foot the bill of a mass technology distribution program. Whatever the situation—and, sometimes, it’s a combination of all three—the high cost can prove to be an insurmountable barrier for incorporating technology into education.
What’s more, The Edvocate, an organization devoted to education policy, points out that, even if students are provided with equipment—say, a personal laptop for schoolwork—not all students have access to the internet once they leave the building. In one Wisconsin school district The Edvocate surveyed, only 78 percent of the district’s students in the low-income category had access to the internet outside of school.
