Access Issues and Education (A)

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Digital Divides

The term "Digital Divide"(Wikipedia 2008) was first used in the 1990's to describe the gap between users and non-users of the internet (Kaiser Family Foundation 2004). However, in discussing issues of access in education, scholars are moving beyond simplistic explanations of a gap between those who have access or use technology and those who do not toward a more complex set of definitions and are now recognizing that referring to a singular divide is not appropriate. There is no singular group or gap. Rather, it is much more appropriate to discuss these gaps in the plural. Even so, there are still a variety of conflicting perspectives on the topic. Further, it must be noted that digital divides exist in all facets of technology. There are not just barriers to acquisition of equipment, but also to broadband connections, effective internet use, adaptive equipment, funding for equipment and programs, meaningful integration of technology within a community and sustainability of programs promoting this integration. A number of scholars are acknowledging that the digital divides are deeply enmeshed within a tangled web of socio-economic, cultural, religious, age and gender issues (Besser 2001; Burbules 2006; Hargittai 2003; Warschauer 2002). In order to achieve sustainable, meaningful, and equitable access, these underlying issues must be addressed. To this end, the United Nations has established a list of Millennium Development Goals that addresses not only information communications technology (ICT) access, but also poverty, gender equality, and education, to name a few. Further, it must not be assumed that the digital divides exist only within the realm of education. Issues of access exist within many facets of life and will continue to grow as technology further permeates society.

Perspectives on Access and Use

Globalization and Access Issues

Globalization is the continuous process of interconnection, growing interdependence and simultaneous change that is occurring in the world as a combination of economic, technological, sociocultural and political forces (Cohen & Kennedy 2000, p. 24). As these forces become more connected on a global scale, ignoring national borders, digital divides will continue to expand and the uneven social consequences of the intertwining social, political and economic processes will spread. Harvey's notion of "time-space compression" is relevant here, since time-space compression is facilitated by technology (Harvey 1990). It is important to note that its effects are not experienced evenly (Cohen & Kennedy 2000).

One aspect of globalization is the knowledge economy in which participants need flexible skills, particularly technical skills, and the ability and stamina to be lifelong learners, adding to an ever-expanding skillset (Cohen & Kennedy 2000; Lauder, H., et. al 2006). As noted by Hargittai, not everyone has the means to acquire the necessary technological skills (Hargittai 2003). This will lead to the Matthew Effect, causing those without access to fall ever further behind as time-space compression continues to occur at an ever-expanding rate. Also, as Burbules has written, English is the de facto language of globalization (2006). As the power dynamics of knowledge, culture, language and identity are deeply intertwined and values-laden, access to the knowledge economy and technological prowess is limited by the barrier of appropriate content (Besser 2001). Another characteristic of globalization that impacts access is the incredible mobility that has come with time-space compression. Zygmunt Bauman wrote of the new classes of Tourists vs. Vagabonds, with Tourists being those who can fully participate to their own advantage in globalization and the consumer society and Vagabonds being those who cannot (Bauman 1998). Indeed, Vagabonds are those who are pulled along behind the Tourists, moving because they must. In fact, Bauman states, "It lays bare the fact that it is now the 'access to global mobility' which has been raised to the topmost rank among the stratifying factors" ((Bauman 1998, p. 87). It is our responsibility as educators to make sure our students have the skills necessary to be willing participants in the knowledge economy and advocates for those who do not. Access to technology must be meaningful, sustainable and reasonable. Millennium Development Goal #8 has been called the most critical goal, for good reason, since development and access go hand in hand. Without Access, there is no progress. Access is at the core of the digital divides, no matter which divide one is trying to address.

As with anything, there are pros and cons, and the following article lists the Positives and Negatives of Globalization (Businessweek 2004).

Rethinking Access and the Digital Divides

Although technology is increasingly available, its distribution and use is not equitable. According to the World Summit on the Information Society, there are crucial gaps in access. This Summit cites the United Nations Information Telecommunication Union, which estimates that "some 800,000 villages – representing around one billion people worldwide – still lack connection to any kind of information and communication technology" (2005). According to Hargittai, this inequality will lead to the Matthew Effect, which predicts greater gaps in effective use of technology (Hargittai 2003). Hargittai's examination of statistics on internet use across population groups shows that although rates of usage are increasing within certain groups, the statistical gap between socio-economic or cultural groups is actually widening, supporting the Matthew Effect. Other researchers, such as Compaine, predict that the expansion of technology will close any gaps in access on its own without intervention (Compaine, as cited in Hargittai 2003). This point of view is short-sighted, however, and does not reflect the statistics that show widening gaps in digital equity when the statistics are compared using multiple criteria, as Hargittai argues (Hargittai 2003, p. 9).

Mark Warschauer provides another framework for rethinking the digital divide as intertwined with "social systems and processes," by moving beyond the concept of access as ownership and entering into the idea of comprehensive and critical ICT literacy (Warschauer 2002, p. 5). Burbules, Callister and Taaffe also write about the need for critical literacy and its connection to social and cultural barriers. Further, they remind us that access is not always desired - that not everyone wants the opportunities available through technology, for a variety of reasons (Burbules, et. al. 2006, p. 93).

Another critique on the concept of the digital divide comes from Howard Besser, who also sees significant barriers to access that extend beyond ownership and connectivity (Besser 2001). His approach calls for a reexamination of what it means to have access, and whether or not that access is equitable and meaningful.

Barriers to Access

Effective Use: Information Literacy and Appropriateness of Content

There is not only a traditional literacy barrier. There is also a definite language barrier in effective use and access in that much of the internet content is written in English, which has become the de facto language of globalization (Burbules et. al. 2006, p. 95). It is important to note that as Besser writes, over 32 million Americans do not speak English as their first language (Besser 2001, p. 2). Further, much of the internet lacks relevance to underserved populations, in that there are few sources of community information such as jobs or necessary services (Besser 2001). Assuming someone knows how to get to the internet and which buttons to push, once he or she is online, there may not be much culturally relevant content, and certainly not enough content created by diverse groups (Besser 2001).

Access to Content

There are many critiques of internet content centering on questioning corporate agendas and public domain. It would seem that much of the expansion of information on the internet has the sole purpose of creating consumers and providing them opportunities to consume or building the desire to consume (Besser 2001; Burbules 2006). The information online is largely free, but frequently contains advertisements for products. Another concern is that of "gatekeeping" (Hargittai 2003). There is so much information available, that much of it is simply not accessible to a novice user. Search engines filter user choices and gates channel users to specific sites. Therefore, users are not necessarily channeled to the best site, but are instead led to the most popular site, or they are led by a corporate agenda to a specific internet location (Hargittai 2003).

The principles of Net Neutrality and its preservation fall within this barrier to access. Net Neutrality is under attack by corporations who have financial interests in controlling information and internet pathways. This video gives a quick overview of the concept of Net Neutrality and its importance, stating that net neutrality is currently not protected by law. Currently, user access is often restricted by the use of filters and gatekeepers; however, without net neutrality, user access to content will be controlled by the broadband carriers who will be able to charge tolls and create virtual express lanes for preferred companies who pay these tolls (Save the Internet 2008; Google 2008). Click here for Google's Guide to Net Neutrality.

Consumers or Creators?

Moving beyond consumerism, but still linking to the concept of a free, neutral internet, there is also the question of content creation. Who gets to produce content? Who does produce content? According to Besser, students in school districts with the money to purchase licenses and high bandwidth are more likely to teach their students how to produce content, as opposed to poorer districts, who are stuck on the consuming end (Besser 2001). This is further shown by Eszter Hargittai and Gina Walejko, who write that creation and sharing of online material is related to socio-economic status and that it is a relatively small number of people who are producing online content (Hargittai & Walejko 2008).

The idea of literacy no longer applies only to print media. In expanding the definition of literacy to new media to ICT usage, there is the implication that students should be capable of creating content as well as comprehending it (Besser 2001; Burbules 2006; Warschauer 2002). There is a conflict of interests here, in that much funding for connections, equipment, etc. must come from for-profit sources as education funding from the state is ever-shrinking.

Social, Economic, or Educational Status

Issues of access exist and often overlap when social, economic or educational status is discussed. Socially people in various communities will or will not have the same advantages to access due to economic and political reasons, as well as the education status of the community. For example, if a country is in political turmoil, some small rural communities will have difficulty getting access because of electricity, money, issues with large and small NGO's finding access to the communities. In the next section you will find global issues of access, as well as how some of these smaller and larger communities are overcoming their access issues. The OECD definition of the Digital Divide reflects these issues.

Examples of Global Access

China Rural-to-urban migrants and laid-off workers who are in an increase in China's digital divide zone are considered the "information have-less." This is a new class of information users, different from the "haves" and "have-nots." They hardly have access to the bare minimum of technology such as:

  • internet cafes
  • prepaid phone cards
  • prepaid mobile phones
  • low-end digital technologies

It is critical that in order enhance labor mobility access to the minimum of ICT China needs to form a "translocal" network. This is a network that that would span over that critical digital divide area. China has a state informatization project that is under the direction of the Ministry of Information Industry (MII). This project promotes the development of information technology for the national economy and social transformation (Cartier, Castells & Qiu 2005).

  • internet technology
  • industry investment
  • IT policy and regulation

As China is still a developing country their ICT is still in the development stages. This report provides a global overview of ICT trends and policies in developing countries, covering issues such as financing infrastructure, the importance of public-private partnerships and effective competition to extending access, using ICT in doing business and formulating national e-strategies.

Australia Although there has been a rapid change in internet access across Australia, there are still many economic, social, and cultural groups that do not have equal access, not just between metropolitan and non-metropolitan areas, but also within metropolitan areas. The increase in technology access continues to bring the promise of opportunity for some, but for others their isolation becomes greater. And they continue to not have access to information that is increasingly only able to be retrieved from the internet (Holloway 2002). The feeling is that they will continue to be excluded from:

  • purchasing goods and services
  • education
  • employment
  • information (ie health, housing)
  • social networking

Africa Many of the small NGO's in Africa that work with women in rural areas are lacking the appropriate technology to ensure that these women get the information they need (Kole 2001). They do not have access to even the basic need, electronic connectivity, to communicate with the grassroots or community based organizations. One way this is being solved in small villages is through solar electricty. Watch this video to learn more. Some of the other issues in Africa, in terms of communication with women, are:

  • technical
  • financial
  • lack of skills
  • language
  • access problems
  • lack of time
  • restricted availability of advanced computer applications

Watch this short video on another way that women are being empowered and using ICT's to contribute to their communities. This video also describes the way that infomation is being distributed to those smaller NGO's and other activist groups in Nigeria. In one village in Uganda, the digital divide being broken is being pioneered by a woman, and in this video you can see how the internet communication is changing the lives of other women, and men, in the community.

Africa's digital divide is great, but there are many groups working to ensure that it continues to diminish so that all have access to ICT. This video shows how one group, Afica IXP is working in Burundi, Malawi, and Zambia to break the digital divide.

Through the process of globalization Africa has put into place many different infrastructures to ensure that the people have access to internet, trade, food sources, etc. This article discusses some of these such as:

Addressing Issues of Access

Millennium Development Goals and Access

In September, 2000, representatives from 147 countries adopted a list of eight Millennium Development Goals addressing the world's most pressing challenges (United Nations 2000). In 2001, the UN produced The Road Map Towards the Implementation of the United Nations Millennium Declaration (United Nations Secretary General 2001). These goals deal with many of the underlying issues of access from a global, socio-economic perspective, such as eradicating poverty, promoting gender equality and ensuring universal access to primary schooling.

Goal #8 specifically addresses the importance of making Information and Communication Technologies available to all (United Nations Secretary General 2001). As a result, the United Nations created a Task Force to work toward implementing this goal in conjunction with economic development (UN ICT Task Force n/d). As noted by a number of scholars, access relies on a number of factors, including availabilty of technology, literacy, community buy-in, sustainability, and appropriateness of content (Besser 2001; Burbules 2006; Hargittai 2003; Warschauer 2002). In order to break out the statistical data necessary to monitor progress toward these goals, the United Nations has implemented the use of Gapminder(2006). This tool compares and cross-references a number of criteria related to the Millennium Development Goals. In addition to the Gapminder site, the MDG Monitor is an excellent resource for tracking progress toward the Millennium Development Goals. Click here to see a video on the importance of achieving Millennium Development Goal #8 This video stresses the importance of a global partnership for development and contends that success in achieving any of the goals is dependent upon this.

Private and Public Organizations/Initiatives Working on Issues of Access

There are many organizations, public and private working to provide access to people around the globe. The purpose of The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Global Libraries Project is to provide computers with internet access and training in public libraries located in developing countries. The Digital Divide Network is concerned with providing an online space for educators and activists to create and publish online content. Hole in the Wall (A World Bank Effort), while criticized by Warschauer (2002), has placed computer kiosks in communities in India under the design of "minimally invasive education." Geekcorps focuses on helping small and medium sized business around the world utilize ICT's to become more profitable. US Dept. of Education Office of Educational Technology has a number of resources, programs and reports on the Digital Divide.

Click Here to read an article by Natasha Lomas on interesting ways to spread connectivity with out-of-the-box solutions such as utilizing balloons and sewers. Another interesting idea written about by Lomas is the utilization of White Spaces as a way of transmitting broadband into homes. Google has stated that this will be a reality by 2009 (DSL Reports 2008). Getting the broadband signal into homes is just one facet of access, as noted above. Once the signal is there, there are still many barriers to consider.

Why Are Access Issues Important?

Disabilities

In today’s schools approximately 14% of all students receive some sort of services from a Special Education system (United States Department of Education 2006). What this means for educators is that preparing material for only the “traditional” student is no longer best practice. In a school environment where students come from different backgrounds, ethnicities, home environments, ability levels, and many other factors, teachers must know how to accommodate all different types of learners throughout the school day. One area of education where this is becoming especially important is education through the use of technology. Not every student is going to use technology in that same way. This is especially true of students with disabilities. This population not only has the same barriers that may be faced by other students, but students with disabilities may also face additional issues with accessing technologies through either cognitive impairments and/or physical impairments.

About Disabilities

For more detailed information about speicific disabilities, click here Disabilities

Supporting Students

For a list of specific ways to support a student's needs with certain disabilities (especially when choosing what technology should be used), click here Disability Needs

Assistive Technology (Access to Education)

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004 (IDEA) “requires IEP teams to consider whether a student with a disability needs assistive technology devices and services as part of the development of the IEP” (Buck 2005). IDEA has purposefully left the definition of assistive technology (and the subsequent services and training associated with this technology) very vague. Such a broad definition prevents from limiting what can be considered technology to be used to assist a student with meeting their educational goals. Regardless, an IEP (Individualized Educational Plan) team must consider whether technology can help a student to meet their academic goals. If it is determined that a student will benefit from some assistive technology (AT) device, then a school is required to provide this device for the student.

The purpose of requiring schools to provide AT devices to students it to assist the student in areas that may be difficult or impossible for the student because of their disability. The device is used to “level the field” so to speak. These devices help students to function as any other typical child would be able to function in a classroom. However, in some cases, if a child’s academic priorities are not the same as the general education curriculum, an AT device may be used to assist the child to meet these goals.

Types of Assistive Technology

Assistive Technology generally falls under the categories of High-Tech or Low-Tech. Sometimes a Mid-Tech label is used. While there are many definitions of exactly what devices fall under which category, a general rule is (Stokes 2008)

  • Low Tech – no electronic or batteries needed. Typically low cost. Examples – pencil grips, picture schedules, binders, photos, highlighters, etc.
  • Mid Tech – battery operated or simple electronic devices. Examples – tape recorder, watch, calculator, egg timer, etc.
  • High Tech – complex electronic equipment. Typically high cost. Examples – computers, complex voice output devices, cameras, etc.
Issues with Assistive Technology (AT)

Training

In order for assistive technology to be effective, everyone involved with the use of the technology must be trained on how to use it. For some devices, this training may be very simple. However, some devices require hours of practice and thick manuals to fully understand and benefit from the device. This requires that the student, special education teacher, paraprofessionals, parents, therapists, general education teacher, and anyone else who will be with the child that uses this device receive training on how to use and repair the device. Not only is there training on how to use the device itself, but training is also necessary for the integration of the technology into the student’s daily life. More often than not, training is not sufficient. The may be caused by the lack of training time, incompatible devices with available resources, or a lack of availability of experts for training (ATTO 2005).

Funding

Funding is always an issue in the area of Special Education. For Assistive Technology, funding is especially important to consider. There are many issues with regards to AT devices (ATTO 2005). Some of these include the following . .

  • AT can be expensive. Some districts may not be able to afford all necessary AT devices despite the fact that they are required by law to provide it. Alternately, families may not be able to purchase technology for home use.
  • If the school purchases an AT device, the student may only be allowed to use the device at school. If the device could be used for non-academic activities, the student may not be allowed to use it outside of the school setting.
  • When the student leaves school, the AT will remain with the district that purchased the AT. If the student needed the device to succeed inside of the school setting, how will the student succeed without it outside of school?

Maintenance

With any technology, the device may need to be replaced. Also, as the student grows, the device will either need to grow and change to meet the student’s needs or be replaced. Also, as a student moves from one setting to another, training for new individuals may be required. All of these things cost money. Maintaining the use of an AT device adds to the financial impact that these apparatuses have (ATTO 2005).

Cultural Barriers

There are several additional issues with assistive technology when it comes to cultural considerations. Perhaps the most common issue with AT is the existence of a language barrier (Family Center on Technology and Disability 2008). Some families and districts cannot effective communicate with each other, which leads the ineffective use of AT. Other issues do exist between different cultural groups but they are not as prominent as the language barrier. These other issues include . . .

  • geographical locations
  • poverty
  • lack of information/knowledge of AT
  • distrust of outside communities
  • fear
  • not wanting to make their disabilities known

Difficulty in Selecting Appropriate AT devices

Often times the best way to see if an AT device is appropriate for a student is to let the student use it for a trial period (Idaho Assistive Technology Project 2008). While experts can recommend certain AT devices, each student has unique needs. Only the student can determine which devices are appropriate. While this is the most effective way to select assistive technology, it is also the least efficient.

  • It can take weeks or months to get a device for the student to sample. This may waste important educational time if the device is not effective.
  • Being able to try different devices may cost money and result in wasted funds if the device needed to be purchased in order to be tried.
  • Some students cannot tell you what is best for them. It takes professional judgment from specialists to determine if an AT device is the best fit. For students who cannot communicate their needs, there is often an adjustment period with new devices, making the selection of appropriate AT even more time consuming.
Benefits of Assistive Technology

While there are some problems with assistive technology, the benefits greatly outweigh some of the barriers to accessing AT. These benefits only limited by the imagination of the human mind. While AT does not solve the problems that some individuals with disabilities face, it does make accessing education possible for many students. Because of the wide variety of ways that a disability can manifest itself in an individual, it is impossible to generalize what devices will work best with which disabilities. However, there are some devices which are more common among certain populations of students. Some of the ways that AT has helped students include the following. . .

NOTE – While the mentioned disability categories are able to have the use of these devices, each student is different and can use any device that considers their individual needs and accomplishes a certain goal. The mentioned categories are merely suggestions and mostly from observation of real students using AT.

Students who could not previously communicate now have the ability to do so –Possibly for students with Cerebral Palsy (Physical and Health Disabilities), Severe and Multiple Disabilities, or Speech and Language Disorders

  • Because of a variety of reasons, some students cannot verbally communicate. AT can give these students a way of interacting with the world around them, voicing their thoughts, and more easily contributing to the community. The following clip shows just such a student. Communication Video

Students who have issues with organization have been significantly aided through the use of Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs) – Possibly for students with ADHD, Learning Disabilities, Autism Spectrum Disorders, or Intellectual and Developmental Disorders

  • PDAs can be used to help students with a variety of difficulties. Some of these include memory issues and organization issues. PDAs can be used to alert a student of important times (medication, meetings, etc) or can be used to keep information centralized in one device instead of in several different locations (calendar, assignment notebook, voice recorder, watch, etc). Consolidating all these different organizational devices into one hand-held tool (the PDA) can improve a student’s ability to stay organized. The following is a clip of some of the features of a PDA and how one school used them. PDA Video

Text reading devices – Possibly for students with Visual Impairments, Learning Disabilities, Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, or Emotional and Behavioral Disorders

  • Many new devices that will identify and read text for students who are blind have opened up literature and other print resources that previously needed to be printed in Braille, verbally recorded and replayed, or read aloud to students. This freedom has allowed students to be more independent. This article shows one such device. Text Reading Video

Braille embossers (printers) – Possibly for students with Visual Impairments

  • One of the most well known devices that has opened up education for students with visual impairments is the Braille embosser. The embosser changes text based print materials into print materials that are represented through a complex system of raised bumps that comprise the Braille alphabet. The embosser works much like a printer except that instead of ink, it creates raised bumps on a page. To get a better idea of how this works, view this video. Embosser Video

Computer aided reading instruction – Possibly for students with Learning Disabilities, ADHD, Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, Autism Spectrum Disorders, or Emotional and Behavioral Disorders

  • Any students both with and without disabilities struggle to learn how to read. There are a variety of computer programs that assist a student to learn how to read. Each program has different characteristics that makes it effective and matching the correct program to the student is very important in successfully using the program. This video shows many of the features of one such program, Kurzweil 3000. Kurzweil Video

Sign Language programs to interpret audio speech on computers – Possibly for students with Deafness, Hard of Hearing, Hearing Loss, Autism, or Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities

  • The iCommunicator eliminates the need for a translator in the classroom. As students are learning, the program shows both text translations and video sign language translations for the students. This video highlights the benefits of this program. Sign Language Video

Switches that give students the ability to control devices – Possibly for students with Physical and Health Impairments, Severe and Multiple Disabilities, or Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities

  • Small switches that are either connected to another device or have a voice output device attached can be used to allow students the ability to activate a device. This video shows a class singing a song using a variety of such switches. Switch Video

Suction bowls and plates for students who need assistance with eating – Possibly for students with Physical and Health Impairments, Severe and Multiple Disabilities, Autism Spectrum Disorders, or Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities.

  • Some students need the extra security of plates and bowls that do not slide on the table. Freedom creates a line of products that will secure a bowl or plate to the table so a student can eat independently. This video shows how it works. Suction Bowl Video

Creating a Virtual Environment – Possibly for students who are Gifted and Talented or have ADHD, Learning Disabilities, Autism Spectrum Disorders, Emotional and Behavioral Disorders, Deafness, Hard of Hearing, or Hearing Loss, Physical and Health Impairments, or Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities.

While these are only nine examples of AT devices, there are thousands of different devices that are available. Also, several devices can be created instead of bought. This can include adding foam around a pencil to create a homemade pencil grip, putting shelf liner under a plate so it does not slide, or propping up a book so that a student does not have to lean over a desk.

Access Issues for People with Disabilities

One of the prevailing concepts in the area of Special Education is the concept of Universal Design for Learning (UDL). This concept originally stemmed from the field of architecture, but applies very well into the area of Special Education as well as giving people with disabilities access to technology, access to architecture, and access to information.

Universal Design for Learning (UDL)

Universal Design simply means “consider the means of all potential users from the beginning" (Pisha & Coyne 2001). When designing anything, it is important to think about who may be using the product and what ways they will need the product to work for successful use. This idea originally started with architecture as a way to make new buildings ADA accessible (accessible for people with disabilities according to the American’s with Disabilities Act – ADA). This thought process not only allowed buildings to be more accessible, but also cost little to nothing when compared to retrofitting a building that did not meet standards (Pisha & Coyne 2001). To see a list of specific considerations to take into account for each disability category, click here Disability Needs

In terms of teaching, three main guidelines were outlined by Pisha and Coyne. These guidelines were: support the recognition of patterns, provide supports for the use of strategies, and provide supports for engagement. While these were originally guidelines for education, they are also applicable to the creation of technology (Pisha & Coyne 2001).

Support the recognition of patterns

When possible, provide an easily distinguished framework for the technology. When students are confused and no discernable structure is in place, students are not able to access the technology to their fullest potential (Pisha & Coyne 2001).

Provide supports for the use of strategies

When possible, provide the tools or strategies that will be necessary for successful use of the technology. For example, if a student is playing a video game that will play an intro during which a mission will be described, preview the intro with the mission goal, “Find the castle key.” This will allow the student to know what important information must be gained from the intro before actually viewing it, and thus freeing the student to enjoy the intro (Pisha & Coyne 2001).

Provide supports for engagement

Every student will have different needs in order to fully be engaged in technology, thus planning ahead to do what is necessary for these students is important. For example, some students may need an audio accompaniment to any text chatting programs online. Providing the option to have this will allow some students to access chat rooms more effectively (Pisha & Coyne 2001).
Incorporating UDL into Technology

Creating technology that will meet the needs of every student seems impossible, especially when some needs seem conflicting. For example, some students need more time to digest text while others will become distracted if the text is presented too slowly. However, from examining the lists of needs for each disability above, it is apparent that many of the different categories of disability have similar needs. In fact, not only to many of the needs overlap between disabilities, but many times these minor alterations also benefit unintended individuals. For example, the curb cuts that are placed in sidewalks at intersections were originally intended for individuals in wheelchairs and individuals with visual impairments. An unanticipated benefit of this change was the ease in which bikers, walkers, mothers with strollers, people pusing carts, children, and many other people found this change to be benficial and useful. Many times changes that are intended for a select group of individuals are also enjoyed by other people as well. The way to accommodate these differing and sometimes conflicting needs is to provide options. When developing technology, it is important to embed many different options so that a student can create technology that is tailored to their needs. Everyone enjoys options, which makes technology more accessible.

Accessibility and Gaming for those with Disabilities

There are a variety of online games that are designed so that individuals with disabilities can utilize them to learn and have fun while they are playing them. These games are designed to allow individuals diagnosed with blindness, individuals diagnosed with deafness, or individuals with varying degrees of visual impairment, and varying degrees of hearing loss.

Games for Individuals with Blindness or Visual Impairments

There are a variety of educational games that are designed for individuals diagnosed with blindness. They accomplish this in a very creative manner. Many of these games are purely audio in that they only use sound so that the individual playing them can participate and learn from the game. For instance the website E-bility.com serves as a central site for a list of games for both those with blindness and those with deafness. This also serves as a central site for serving others with various other disabilities (Access and Gaming 2008).

The games for those with blindness and visual impairments encompass a wide variety of themes and areas. For instance the website for Blind Gamers Sudoku allows individuals to play logic puzzles and other popular games that are designed specifically for those with a visual impairment by offering audio cues for them to play the game (Blind Gamers Suduko 2008). The website for Audible Games consists specifically of crossword puzzles of differing levels of difficulty which are based on audible clues for an individual to follow the play the game. AudioGamesconsists of a variety of genres of playable games from role-playing games to logic puzzles which rely solely upon audible cues to allow the student to participate (AudioGames 2008).

DanZ Games utilizes some visual and audible cues to allow individuals with varying degrees of visual impairment to play arcade style games for fun. The online world of Alter Aeon supports modifications that allow individuals with visual impairments to interact with others within a virtual world. This site allows those with blindness or visually impairment to play because it uses audible cues and visual cues to allow the individual to play the game (Alter Aeon 2008).

Games for Individuals with Hearing Loss, Deafness, or Hard of Hearing

There are also a variety of games that have been designed to allow those that with Deafness to gain access for educational opportunities. The site Computer games for everyone by 7-128 Softwareconsists of a variety of games that rely upon visual cues such as bright and flashing colors to draw the individual's attention so they can adequately participate in this game (Computer Games For Everyone 2008).

There are also a category of games that are designed for individuals with multiple sensory disabilities. These games are what as known as single switch games. They rely upon the use of a single button on the keyboard so that the game can be played (Access and Gaming 2008). Those individuals that with blindness or visual impairment can play these games because the player can use audible cues to know when the switch needs to be pressed. Those that who are Deaf can rely upon visual cues to press the switch at the correct time.

An example of this type of game is available at Turning Point Switch Software Games which consists of games that are designed to be both fun and educational. These games are also designed with all ages in mind. One Switch is also another example of single switch games designed for individuals with various disabilities.

The website YouTube contains videos relevant to this issue. There are two videos that demonstrate the use of computer gaming to help student's with disabilities learn various material through direct interaction with the computer. This first video demonstrates the importance of interactive learning to a young student with physical and cognitive disabilities (Project @pple Case Study 3 2008). This video of Interactive Learning shows her using a touch screen in order to enjoy playing this game while learning at the same time. The second video shows another student using the computer with similar software to learn from the computer. More Interactive Learning (Project @pple Case Study 2 2008).

The Nintendo Wii

The Nintendo Wii video game system is also another resource that is coming to play an important role in the educational system and is helping students with disabilities to learn and interact and have fun. First and foremost by its very design the Wii transcends the traditional gamer demographic: "The Nintendo Wii is one of the latest generation of video game consoles and incorporates a number of innovative features designed to target a broader demographic of users than other gaming systems." (Pearson 2007) The motivation for using the Wii as an educational tool for those with disabilities comes from the motion sensor controller that can be operated with the use of one hand only: "The Wii features a motionsensitive controller that looks like a television remote control but can quickly sense the user's movements and translate them into on-screen action." (Weir 2008) Teachers want to rely upon the use of the Wii to present information in a variety of media to help the students to grasp the concept that is being taught: "Ongoing research shows that students learn more quickly and easily with instruction across multiple modalities or through a variety of media." (Weir 2008) To get a better understanding of what the Nintendo Wii system, Nintendo maintains the following informational website with important links regarding the operation of the Wii: What is Nintendo Wii.

The Wii entertainment system is being looked at in a variety of manners in order to help develop the education of students with various disabilities. For instance games that mimic real life settings such as Wii Play and Cooking MaMa are being looked at for transferable skills: "These games will be evaluated ... for supporting young adults with learning difficulties and students with physical disabilities in developing transferable skills in a safe environment." (Pearson 2007) Information pertaining to the Wii Play can be found at Wii Playand information about Cooking Mama can be found at Cooking MaMa. Online team games such as Wii Sports are also being analyzed as sources for the development of cooperative and interactive skills for the students: "These games will be evaluated ... for the development of collaboration, communication and group decision making skills as well as for their physical requirements." (Pearson 2007) Information on Wii Sports can be found here at Wii Sports. Finally adventure games such as Wing Island are being looked at to give students new experiences in order to expose them to new thoughts and ideas: "The focus of this evaluation will be in the games potential for providing players with experiences they might not otherwise have (such as flying) and its potential in the educational context for supporting activities such as field trips and work experience." (Pearson 2007)

The Wii has also been used to move beyond gaming to allow students and teachers to learn to interact in a new way. On such use of the Wii has been undertaken by a researcher known as Johnny Chung Lee, who created his own whiteboard for the Wii. By using the Wii he was able to use the Wii controller to achieve the same effect of a whiteboard in a much cheaper manner (Lee 2008). He found this software fascinating because they teach students valuable skills such collective intelligence to work out problems together through the use of the whiteboard (Lee 2008). The software to duplicate this whiteboard is readily available to use on the following website for free: Wii Whiteboard Here he also demonstrates the use of this software with several videos that show how he utilizes this in the classroom.

Gender Gap and Gender Biases

It is imperative to understand the definitions of gender gap and gender bias. This will allow for a clearer understanding of this issue. Gender gap is the differences between women and men, especially as reflected in social, political, intellectual, cultural, or economic attainments or attitudes.

Gender bias is the prejudice in action or treatment against a person on the basis of their sex.

The Gender Gap in Technology/Computer Software

There are several factors that contribute to inequality in technological access as it relates to education. Geographical location and isolation to technology, race/ethnicity, social status and income are among these factors. Gender inequality however, is a factor that is affected no matter what region, ethnicity or social status one belongs to.

Many universities have seen women advancing in most fields, with the exception of computer science. The University of Michigan's statistics show that women make up 27% of engineering undergraduates. One in every 10 computer science majors is a woman (Pinkard 2000). In addition, the Association of American University Women reported that "boys exhibit higher computer self-confidence and a more positive attitude about computers than girls". According to the AAU, most girls between the ages of 14-17 prefer data entry classes to computer science classes (Pinkard 2000). Reports indicating that males are more likely to lean towards computer and engineering and that women are more likely to lean towards data entry raise concerns regarding what influences are creating this separation. Society constructs a comfort zone for boys and girls where they are encouraged to fit into a certain mold. This stereotype does not end with the idea of boys playing with video games and girls playing with Barbie dolls. It continues to influence the types of careers they choose by influencing how they interact with technology in education. Much of the encouragement to fit properly into predefined gender roles begins at an early age, when children are encouraged, and usually only allowed, to play with particular toys and computer/video games.

"A new research group at U of M is studying how software design affects this gender gap. Software produced specifically for girls has grown so much that toy stores display separate signs for boys and girls software. But researchers and parents wonder if so-called pink software, such as Disney's Princess Fashion Boutique and Barbie Magic Hairstyler will teach girls the technology skills and confidence building they need to narrow the digital gender gap. According to Nichole Pinkard, Director of the Gender and Learning Technologies Research Group, the popularity of pink software may be more a result of marketing campaigns than true preferences among girls. However, while games like Barbie may not teach girls many technology skills, Pinkard says they do attract girls who may not otherwise use computers. Until researchers learn more about the effects of software on girls' self-esteems, Pinkard encourages parents to be actively involved in selecting and evaluating software for their daughters" (Pinkard 2000). For the complete interview, visit Pinkard Interview.

What seems to be likely is that there is not as much of a restriction to access, but that there is not as much encouragement for both genders to actively participate in technological learning. The same statistics that support the gender gap report that three times as many girls as boys do not use the computer at all, while five times as many boys as girls use different type of technology more than anyone in their home. More studies explain that girls are more apt to use the computer for learning and word processing, while boys use the computer more for games.

There are some interesting points to consider to explain why girls are less encouraged to use technology. Some teachers and parents assume that their daughters are just not interested in them. If, because of how these games are marketed, parents assume that their daughters would rather play Barbie, then that's what they will buy for their daughter. Even if she has an interest in computer software, she may be more likely to play Barbie because that is the role that she is being taught to fit into.

Gender Gap in Education

In 1992, The American Association of University Women released the report Where Schools Still Fail Our Children. Because of the publication of this report, AAUW has given us insight on how differently males and females’ educational experiences are affected due to many factors that include sexual harassment, girls in science and technology, race and gender, but more importantly the gender gap in education.

Since 1992, The American Association of University Women has annually reported research on gender equity in education. What is interesting to discover, is that one of the reports by AAUW Where the Girls Are: The Facts About Gender Equity in Education suggests that males have become the disadvantaged gender and that women have made many gains at the expense of males(Corbett & Hill 2008). It is important to realize that the gender gap affects both males and females and that women are not always as disadvantaged as media and other sources may portray. This article opens new perspectives to the stereotype that women are falling further behind males in education and businesses.

The Gender Gap in Education shift in society seems to be focused on verbal skills (Althouse 2006). More and more, teachers are asking students to keep written journals as early as kindergarten (Althouse 2006). Many teachers rely on Kid Writing, a book that teaches necessary skills in a variety of subjects (Althouse 2006). However, Althouse also mentions that boys’ verbal shortcomings tend to occur in ninth grade, which further affects additional achievement academically. Because of this, in 1989 in Virginia at the Governor’s summit, both Republican and Democratic parties vowed to “shake up” the schools (Althouse 2006). As a result of the summit, to better prepare students for higher education, every student beginning with the ninth grade would participate in a program that was "saturated verbally" to better prepare them for college(Althouse 2006).

In the 1970’s, The New Gender Gap in Education mentioned a turning point. Female high school graduates are just as likely to attend college as the boys (Becker 2008). Also, more girls complete high school compared to the boys (Becker 2008). Earlier on, it was common that girls would not further their education. During that time, girls were expected to marry at an early age, start families early and stay at home to raise children (Becker 2008). On the other hand, boys were expected to provide for their families, work and further their education. During that time period, many women did not think an education was necessary. Also, women were not active in the workforce as they are now (Becker 2008). The more education that is attained, such as a college education, considerably increases the earning potential for both women and men (Posner 2008). Many individuals are aware of such financial benefits.

In addition, the Gender Gap Grows among traditional aged students who may be driving the decline in the gap. From 1995 – 1996 thru 2003 – 2004, the ratio of all women among students 24 or younger grew from 52 to 55 percent (Lederman 2006). The table below represents the findings:

Proportion of Undergraduates 24 or Younger

STUDENTS 1995-1996 2003-2004
ALL STUDENTS
MEN 48% 45%
WOMEN 52% 55%
WHITE
MEN 49% 46%
WOMEN 51% 54%
BLACK
MEN 37% 40%
WOMEN 63% 60%
HISPANIC
MEN 45% 43%
WOMEN 55% 57%
ASIAN AMERICAN
MEN 54% 50%
WOMEN 46% 50%


Women representing the majority of college graduates are also happening in other countries such as Europe and Asia (Becker 2008). Becker contends that American students in college make up 57% and comprise of about 60% of those who graduate. The statistics show that women in college are continuously on the rise.

At the same time, some men are not perfroming well in school. This is why they do not further their education and drop out; continuing the gap between both sexes (Becker 2008). It can be indicated that as they continue to drop out of school, they feel that school is not the place for them. Many of these students are discouraged from having lower grades than their female counterparts.

Gender Bias in Education

Gender Bias in Education mainly affects girls (Chapman 2008). In fact, examination of the socialization of gender within schools and a gender-biased hidden curriculum demonstrates that girls are shortchanged in the classroom, according to Chapman. Schools play a major role in perpetuating such bias. In schools and society, boys are treated differently from girls. When boys misbehave, such behavior is also recognized as normal because the attitude is that “boys will be boys” (Chapman 2008). When certain behaviors are ignored, biases remain present in the school system.

Teachers can perpetuate this type of socialization as well. There is still Gender Bias in Education because teachers are teaching the way they were taught and trained, and there may be times when they are unaware of any biases that may be present in the classroom (Chapman 2008). Girls are usually praised physically for their appearance and behavior while boys are generally praised for the mental and physical abilities (Chapman 2008). Chapman states that girls are also socialized into thinking that being accepted and popular is more important than an education. In this way, at an early age, girls start defining who they are in comparison to boys. Many times girls and boys are put into categories which leads them to compare or separate themselves (Chapman 2008). Girls can be classified as nice, popular, stuck-up as guys can be classified as a jock, popular, and artistic.

Certain behaviors that girls possess can be taken out of context or misinterpreted. When girls are more aggressive, they are usually considered bossy instead of being called a “go-getter”. When boys are aggressive, they are excused, and their behavior is generally accepted because that is how they are defined and tolerated. The school system is only a replica of society.

Through the resources available in the educational system, gender bias is taught unconsciously at times in the curriculum (Chapman 2008). Textbooks play a major part in contributing to this problem according to Chapman. She mentions that many authors of the textbooks are males and the female contribution is often limited. With that being the case, a male perspective is dominated and represented in the schools. Often times, these experiences may present an unbalanced representation of women and generate stereotypes that further perpetuate bias(Chapman 2008). This can lead to an unequal education between boys and girls because they are not getting a balance of both perspectives.

More education and resources need to be provided to teachers to make them more aware of the gender bias that exists in the educational system. Different activities in the classroom could be incorporated to eliminate stereotypical thinking. Self-evaluations and strategies could be incorporated to combat this issue (Chapman 2008). Chapman mentions that teachers can help students by facilitating discussion of any biases that arise in the classrooms. Addressing those issues immediately is a start. Communication is the key in helping resolve biases.

Examples of Global Gender Gap in Education

There have been reports in addition to the AAUW that suggests that women are closing the gender gap in education, poverty and the workforce, not only in the US, but also developing nations. The World Bank Group in 1999 released the report Gender, Growth, and Poverty Reduction. This report focused on the Sub-Saharan region of Africa by researching differences in gender, growth and poverty reduction. One difference that is important to consider when comparing gender gap between developed nations and developing nations is the past and current political and economic climate in those nations. The article In-depth: The Gender Gap agrees that poverty is indeed one of the major factors that prohibit girls from closing the gender gap in education. “School fees and expenses relating to transport, clothing and books widen the gender gap: as families cannot afford to educate all their children, girls are the ones that stay at home, helping with household chores. Other barriers have to do with the sexual harassment to which girls and women are exposed, both on the way to and inside schools, early marriage and adolescent pregnancy.”

Some of the major factors in Sub Saharan Africa that continue to widen the gender gap include, “ weak governance, high policy volatility, poor public services, disease, violent conflict…” (World Bank Group 1999). These factors in some regions of the United States could include some of the previous factors such as poor public service, but more so it is that our history excluded women from prestigious and important professions, which continues to create inequality to this day. Even with these factors, women in Sub Saharan Africa have been making progress towards leveling equality in education. The world bank article reported that women have a higher percentage of completing primary education than men. The article also suggest that social and cultural factors play a stronger role than income in determining female participation in education.

Gender gap in India's schools is present as well. In India, there is no economic incentive for girls to attend school (Kingdon 1999). The economic rate of return in educating males far exceeds those of females because men are not discriminated in the labor market economically (Kingdon 1999). Kingdon mentions that the support of education by parents is mostly supported of their sons. Also, he states that societal norms are still present with girls engaging in arranged marriages at an early age and forgoing an education to become a mother and a wife.

According to Gender-bias in Education Opportunities for Population Aged 12-18 in Mexico: 1992-2004, urban areas in Mexico especially invest in education for girls. Families that are non-poor tend to invest more in the education of their daughters (Aguayo, et. al. 2007). This support is mainly found in two-parent homes. Heads of household that are female and households with older siblings account for higher levels of education for women (Aguayo, et. al. 2007). According to the authors, discrimination of males has been decreasing over the years.

Bridging the Gap

It is important for educators to be aware of the differences of males and females, particularly for timed assessments and homework assignments (Viadero 2006). According to Viadero, one possible way of bridging the gap is to eliminate penalties associated with grading homework. Of 200 teachers K-12 surveyed, eighty-four percent mentioned that late homework was turned in more often by boys or not turned in at all (Viadero 2006).

Creating a “boy-friendly” environment is another possible solution to minimizing gaps in education. For example, The Gurian Institute promotes teaching techniques that are “boy friendly” (Viadero 2006). Some of their strategies include “brain breaks” for students, meaningful homework assignments, and the use of squeezing stress balls to help boys stay focused.

Another possibility of minimizing gaps would be to separate the boys from the girls by putting them in different classrooms. For example, Woodlawn Avenue Elementary School in DeLand, FL has a student body of 850 students and are taking steps to improve the achievement in boys (Viadero 2006). From 2004, they have had separate classrooms for boys and girls. On state tests, the administrators found that their students are outscoring same-aged students of mixed classes.

In addition, Boys Project, a national network launched by prominent experts are exploring the disengagement of boys from school, is another program that helps to bridge the gap between boys and girls (Viadero 2006).

Elections and Technology: An Example of Access Issues in America

Lack of experience with, or lack of knowledge about technology will effect individuals when participating in the community. Today, techonologies such as touch screen machines to send a packages in the mail or to buy stamps are becoming more avaiable to all socio-economic groups. Also, the use of credit cards at automated filling stations, or in stores, often require a series of operations to be performed; thus a general education that exposes individuals to techonology is needed in order to comfortably function in society. Most important is the issue of access and technological education background within communities every two and four years, when they have the opportunity to vote for the local and national leaders of the United States.

Elections have been drastically effected by technology in the last ten years. As a country we have moved from the paper ballot, to the mechanical lever system in the 19th and early 20th Centuries, to punch cards, optical scans, and now touch screens in the late 20th and 21st Centuries. There have always been issues concerning elections and access to all. It is only within the last ten years, however that the issue of access has focused on the technologies involved.

2000 Election, with focus on the Florida Recount

Florida received a lot of attention during and after the 2000 presidential election due to the disenfranchisement of many of the State's voters. This disenfranchisement occurred in many areas such as inexperienced poll workers, antiquated machinery, and inaccessible polling locations leading the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights to declare a violation of Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act (VRA). The VRA was enacted in 1965 to enforce the 15th Amendment's proscription against voting discrimination (Foreman, Reid, Reilly & Wiggins 2001).

The United States Commission on Civil Rights, in their executive summary, concluded that the most dramatic undercount in the Florida election was the uncast ballots of eligible voters who were wrongfully turned away from the polls. Statistical data, reinforced by credible anecdotal evidence, point to the widespread denial of voting rights(Foreman, Reid, Reilly & Wiggins 2001). However, they found that disenfranchisement occurred most often with black voters. The executive summary points to several perspectives to illustrate the magnitude of the problem:

  • Statewide, based upon county-level statistical estimates, black voters were nearly 10 times more likely than nonblack voters to have their ballots rejected.
  • Statistical analysis shows that the disparity in ballots cast but not counted between black and nonblack voters was not the result of education or literacy difference.
(This statistic does not take into account the connection between a person's education or literacy and their job/profession, which determines where they have access to housing, which in turn determines where they vote and whether or not they would have access to the 'better' technologies)
  • Approximately 11 percent of Florida voters were African American; however, African Americans cast about 54 percent of the 180,000 spoiled ballots in Florida during the 2000 election.

The counties in which this disenfranchisement occurred most often were those with lower socio-economic standing. In these counties, it was not only access to voting that was denied, but also the access to other technologies such as well-functioning punch card ballot booths or optical scanners.

Punch Card Voting Systems

The Punch Card machine,Votomatic, was invented and manufactured solely through IBM until 1982 when the patenting process, according to William Rouverol allowed lower quality machines to enter the market (Wikipedia 2008). All punch-card-based voting systems use special cards where each possible hole is pre-scored. The person voting must read the ballot and then using a punch tool, create a perforation on the card. That perforated card is then fed through another machine that tabulates the votes by means of the pre-scored perforations.

Punch card based voting systems were used in many counties across Florida during the 2000 election. Access issues came into play when the recount was issued and the US Commission of Civil Rights began to investigate the voting systems involved. What the commission found was that the punch card voting systems, the Votomatic, in higher socio-economic areas functioned fairly well with the expected amount of error occurring during an election. However, in counties with lower socio-economic areas, the voting systems were found to be older or lower quality systems, which led to many problems during the recount. William Rouverol, creator of the Votomatic, stated that the The machines used in Florida had five times as many errors as a true Votomatic.

One notorious problem with the system was the incomplete punch; which led to a smaller hole than expected, or to a mere slit in the card, or to a dimple in the card, or to a hanging chad. When a chad is not fully detached from the ballot it is described by various terms corresponding to the level of indentation. The following terms generally apply when describing a four-cornered Chad (Wikipedia 2008).

  • Hanging chads are attached to the ballot at only one corner.
  • Swinging chads are attached to the ballot at two corners.
  • Tri-chads are attached to the ballot at three corners.
  • Pregnant or dimpled chads are attached to the ballot at all four corners, but bear an indentation indicating the voter may have intended to mark the ballot. (Sometimes pregnant is used to indicate a greater mark than dimpled.)

This technical problem was claimed by the Democratic Party to have caused the problems in the 2000 election, which resulted in the Florida recount. Critics claimed that punch-card voting machines were primarily used in Democratic areas and that hundreds of ballots were not read properly or were disqualified due to incomplete punches, which allegedly tipped the vote in favor of George W. Bush over Al Gore (Wikipedia 2008). What was discovered by the Civil Rights Committee was that in those Democratic areas, quite often the systems had not been cleaned from previous years resulting in a ballot with a 'hanging, swinging, tri, pregnant or dimpled' chad, which during the recount process would be considered a non-vote.

Most states have eliminated punch-card voting systems of all types after the 2000 Florida experience.

Optical Scan Machines

Quite often used in the higher socio-economic areas of Florida, an advantage of these systems was that the voters did not have to learn to use a voting machine, they only needed to use pen and paper to mark their intent. Another positive quality was that the machines have the ability to recount the voter's intent if the numbers are close enough to call a recount. While these systems are preferred, their use in Florida was not widespread, and critics often point out the many ways in which the system can be compromised; specifically citing the Volusia Error, which was what first alerted many to the tabulation error between Bush and Gore during the 2000 election.

Recount

Because of the many human and technological errors the numbers between Bush and Gore were close enough to call for a recount. There were additional problems conducting the recount such as the timelines set up by various Florida officials, human error while conducting the manual recount, human error while conducting the machine recount and the discovery of errors within the Florida Central Voter File; where many eligible voters had been incorrectly placed on the ineligible voting list. According to the Civil Rights Committee analysis of the file (Palast 2001).

  • 57,700 people were identified as 'ex-felons' to be removed from voter rolls (This was approximately 3% of Florida's African-American electorate)
  • At the time of the election the file contained a number of 'false positives', that is, people identified as felons who were not actually felons.
  • Over 4,000 blank conviction dates and over 325 conviction dates in the future were automatically placed on the ineligible list.
  • Overall approximately 8,000 names were erroneously placed on the ineligible list.

Due the wide array of problems caused by the voting technologies and groups involved in the recount process Congress began pushing for reform. In 2002, Congress passed the Help America Vote Act (HAVA), which gave incentives to replace punch-card machines and authorized $3.9 billion for states to buy new technology, among other things (Coleman & Fischer 2007). States began their search and interesting enough four companies- Diebold, ES&S, Sequoia and Hart- were aggressively marketing their new touch-screen voting machines (Thompson 2008).

Touch Screen Voting

After experiencing the horror of the 2000 election in Florida, any state could be persuaded to believe that the computer was a perfect answer to the hanging chad; and many did. HAVA offered no assistance or guidelines as to what type of machine to buy; therefore not all States accepted the inevitability of the touch-screen voting machine. Those that did however, are experiencing many of the same problems concerning access as they did during previous elections. In addition, using touch-screen computer technologies has opened the door too many other issues such as legitimacy, security and reliability.

Click to read the New York Times article, Can You Count on Voting Machines? by Clive Thompson, which looks at the successes and failures of touch-screen voting machines in Florida, New Hampshire and Ohio. It is clear after reading the article that the issues behind touch-screen voting is not whether or not the machines have the possibility for error because there will always be error, be it human or machine, in the voting process. What is clearly needed though are people readily available who can educate the masses on how to properly cast and check their vote or how to solve server and computer glitches. And those people will need to first have an education that provides access to the technologies involved.

What needs to be done?

What occured in Florida during 2000 is a large and complicated example of how access to technology has negatively affected a society. It is not an isolated issue however as disenfranchisement has occured in every state on a large and small scale throughout history. The difference today, however, is that disenfranchisement increasingly occurrs due to the technologies involved; be it mechanical or human error. The cost of this error can be seen today in public polls that measure voter apathy. Many people turn away from supporting democracy, by means of withholding their vote on election day, after they experience or witness incidents such as the Florida 2000 election.

If States are going to use new technologies, such as the touch screen machines, then they need to provide training on how to use them. In Clive Thomas' article he looked at the use of touch-screen voting machines in Florida during the 2004 elections and Ohio during the 2004 elections. Just as they had in 2000, Florida suffered great disenfranchisement during the 2004 election. Yet, in Ohio, there were virtually no problems. The difference- Ohio had a voting coordinator who was soley responsible for maintaining the usability of the machines during the voting process. This coordinator also organized training for communities where people were unfamiliar with the new technologies, thus cutting down on human error. In a country that has the ability to provide access and training to its citizens; the government, be it Federal or State, cannot afford to stand back and allow countless 'Florida debacles' to occur. Ohio's success can serve as a model for other States, as long as the information can be shared prior to the 2008 presidential election.

References

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