Tip 29: Address digital equity issues with school-provided wifi

The shift to distance learning due to the COVID-19 pandemic brought digital equity challenges front and center. Adequate devices and wifi access at home for each and every student is a fundamental requirement to ensure students have equal opportunities to learn.

How do you help level the playing (or in this case, educational) field? Over the past six weeks, districts and schools took action to tackle digital equity issues and provide internet access to everyone — opening up school wifi that students and parents can use to download materials in school parking lots. Some have even brought wifi to needed areas by rigging their school buses with wifi systems. Here are several examples to explore.

Sense Charter School sent out a notice to their community, inviting them to use the school’s wifi from their parking lot.

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Seminole Junior High sent out this message, announcing their new “wifi buses” plan for rural areas with a map of locations.

 
 

Others around the country are dialing in their own wifi bus strategies. Some are posting wifi access codes on bus windshields, and others have technicians available to answer questions.

 
 

K-12 Remote Tips

We send out an email with each new remote communications tip for K12. Some examples use ParentSquare, but these tips will work with any comprehensive communications tool. Sign up to receive them straight in your inbox.

We’d love to know what you are doing — what great examples or ideas would you like to share with other schools? Simply comment below or submit your tip via our web form.

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