How Does New Zealand Fair Against
van Dijk’s Access Gaps Model?
Motivational Access
Teachers’ need to change their pedagogy, if they want technology to make a significant difference, (Misha, as cited in Wright, 2010) as learning with technology will not happen without teachers’ deliberately making pedagogical changes. (Wright, 2010). However many factors such as time and money can greatly affect a person’s level of motivation, (van Dijk, 2005) and this is especially true for teachers.
In 2002 and 2003, The New Zealand government and local businesses supported low decile schools to bridge the digital divide in terms of material access, professional development, and infrastructure to promote collaboration via ‘The Digital Opportunities Project’. The project proved to have very little effect on closing the digital divide. It highlighted the lack of vision and the inequalities of educational opportunities that need to be addressed. It concluded that teacher and student attitudes and motivation towards technology, was a significant contributing factor to the small effect the project had. (Adhikari, Parsons, & Mathrani, 2012).
When analysing the uptake of use 'Bring Your Own Device' in a North Island High School, Adhikari et al (2012), found the dependency of teacher and student attitude and motivation to still be very evident. This clearly illustrates that motivational access is continuing to be a reason for the digital divide in New Zealand schools and must be addressed before the other levels of access in van Dijk’s model can be obtained successfully.
Teachers’ need to change their pedagogy, if they want technology to make a significant difference, (Misha, as cited in Wright, 2010) as learning with technology will not happen without teachers’ deliberately making pedagogical changes. (Wright, 2010). However many factors such as time and money can greatly affect a person’s level of motivation, (van Dijk, 2005) and this is especially true for teachers.
In 2002 and 2003, The New Zealand government and local businesses supported low decile schools to bridge the digital divide in terms of material access, professional development, and infrastructure to promote collaboration via ‘The Digital Opportunities Project’. The project proved to have very little effect on closing the digital divide. It highlighted the lack of vision and the inequalities of educational opportunities that need to be addressed. It concluded that teacher and student attitudes and motivation towards technology, was a significant contributing factor to the small effect the project had. (Adhikari, Parsons, & Mathrani, 2012).
When analysing the uptake of use 'Bring Your Own Device' in a North Island High School, Adhikari et al (2012), found the dependency of teacher and student attitude and motivation to still be very evident. This clearly illustrates that motivational access is continuing to be a reason for the digital divide in New Zealand schools and must be addressed before the other levels of access in van Dijk’s model can be obtained successfully.
Material Access
Internet Access
This has improved greatly for New Zealanders especially in the last 15 years. In the year 2000 just 22.2% of the population had access and in 2015 this has increased to 94.6%. (Miniwatts Marketing Group, 2015). New Zealand is ranked among the top 25 countries in the world, and is placed 20th according to the NRI. With a score of 5.27 out of a possible 7, shows that New Zealand has great potential for using technology and internet access in meaningful ways in education. (Bilbao-Osorio, Dutta, Lanvin, 2014).
The government owned company, Network For Learning (N4L) is working towards providing "all schools with Government funded access to reliable, fast, safe internet connections with uncapped data." (http://elearning.tki.org.nz/Ministry-initiatives/Connecting-to-the-N4L-Managed-Network/Overview).
As of 17 August 2015, 80% of New Zealand schools were connected to N4L, totalling 2000 schools with the goal that all will be connected by the end of 2016. This shows continued improvement and support by the government has decreased the divide between those who ‘have’ and those who ‘have not’ got access to high speed internet. (Chubb, 2015). Once schools are connected to N4L, they will no longer pay for their internet access. (Clement, 2015).
Funding
New Zealand schools see the cost of digital technologies and online services as the biggest barrier. (Johnson, Wood, & Sutton, 2014). Each school receives an Operations Grant that is their government funding based on the number of students in the school. In terms of technology and closing the digital divide it is up to individual schools to decide how this money is spent. This equates to an average of 11% of a schools’ budget being allocated to technology. (Johnson, Wood, & Sutton, 2014). No additional funding is provided for hardware, software or professional development for teachers and schools. (Barbour et al, 2011).
Bring Your Own Device (BYOD)
This is when students bring their own digital device from home to access their school's internet. It can create a digital divide between those families who can afford to provide their children with a device and those who cannot. Some schools have adopted this as a means to increase the technology that they have access to. (Brown, cited in Clement, 2015). In a survey carried out by Adobe, 2012, 35.2% of secondary schools, 20% of intermediate school and 6.9% of primary schools operate a BYOD policy, while 14.3% were undecided. Two percent of all state funded schools report that all their students have their own device, (Johnson, Wood, & Sutton, 2014,) showing New Zealand is at just an infancy stage of this initiative.
On average there is one school owned computer for every three children in primary and secondary schools. As illustrated in the below graphic, this has plateaued and has not improved since 2011. (Johnson, Wood, & Sutton, 2014, p.92).
Internet Access
This has improved greatly for New Zealanders especially in the last 15 years. In the year 2000 just 22.2% of the population had access and in 2015 this has increased to 94.6%. (Miniwatts Marketing Group, 2015). New Zealand is ranked among the top 25 countries in the world, and is placed 20th according to the NRI. With a score of 5.27 out of a possible 7, shows that New Zealand has great potential for using technology and internet access in meaningful ways in education. (Bilbao-Osorio, Dutta, Lanvin, 2014).
The government owned company, Network For Learning (N4L) is working towards providing "all schools with Government funded access to reliable, fast, safe internet connections with uncapped data." (http://elearning.tki.org.nz/Ministry-initiatives/Connecting-to-the-N4L-Managed-Network/Overview).
As of 17 August 2015, 80% of New Zealand schools were connected to N4L, totalling 2000 schools with the goal that all will be connected by the end of 2016. This shows continued improvement and support by the government has decreased the divide between those who ‘have’ and those who ‘have not’ got access to high speed internet. (Chubb, 2015). Once schools are connected to N4L, they will no longer pay for their internet access. (Clement, 2015).
Funding
New Zealand schools see the cost of digital technologies and online services as the biggest barrier. (Johnson, Wood, & Sutton, 2014). Each school receives an Operations Grant that is their government funding based on the number of students in the school. In terms of technology and closing the digital divide it is up to individual schools to decide how this money is spent. This equates to an average of 11% of a schools’ budget being allocated to technology. (Johnson, Wood, & Sutton, 2014). No additional funding is provided for hardware, software or professional development for teachers and schools. (Barbour et al, 2011).
Bring Your Own Device (BYOD)
This is when students bring their own digital device from home to access their school's internet. It can create a digital divide between those families who can afford to provide their children with a device and those who cannot. Some schools have adopted this as a means to increase the technology that they have access to. (Brown, cited in Clement, 2015). In a survey carried out by Adobe, 2012, 35.2% of secondary schools, 20% of intermediate school and 6.9% of primary schools operate a BYOD policy, while 14.3% were undecided. Two percent of all state funded schools report that all their students have their own device, (Johnson, Wood, & Sutton, 2014,) showing New Zealand is at just an infancy stage of this initiative.
On average there is one school owned computer for every three children in primary and secondary schools. As illustrated in the below graphic, this has plateaued and has not improved since 2011. (Johnson, Wood, & Sutton, 2014, p.92).
Skills Access:
New Zealand schools now have more access to digital technologies and overall this is gradually improving as are the skills in which teachers have to use them successfully. By the means of an adapted instrument (see below - table 32) from research carried out by Knezek & Christensen’s (2003, as cited in Johnson, Wood, & Sutton, 2014), the level at which teachers adopt digital technologies (ICT) can be evaluated.
New Zealand schools now have more access to digital technologies and overall this is gradually improving as are the skills in which teachers have to use them successfully. By the means of an adapted instrument (see below - table 32) from research carried out by Knezek & Christensen’s (2003, as cited in Johnson, Wood, & Sutton, 2014), the level at which teachers adopt digital technologies (ICT) can be evaluated.
Image from Johnson, Wood, & Sutton, 2014, p. 81.
Teachers need support and assistance to take full advantage of good internet access and the technology devices they have available, and to improve their level of use as demonstrated by the six stages in the table above.
The image below illustrates New Zealand teacher usage (72%) is mostly in the last three stages of adoption. While this is encouraging, the results from this 2014 survey in comparison to 2011, show that teachers have moved somewhat backwards in relation to the six stages. Although this survey has its limitations, it does highlight the need for teachers to have continued support and guidance in order to reach a stage where they can seamlessly integrate technology in their classroom programme.
Teachers need support and assistance to take full advantage of good internet access and the technology devices they have available, and to improve their level of use as demonstrated by the six stages in the table above.
The image below illustrates New Zealand teacher usage (72%) is mostly in the last three stages of adoption. While this is encouraging, the results from this 2014 survey in comparison to 2011, show that teachers have moved somewhat backwards in relation to the six stages. Although this survey has its limitations, it does highlight the need for teachers to have continued support and guidance in order to reach a stage where they can seamlessly integrate technology in their classroom programme.
Virtual Learning Network (VLN)
The New Zealand Government in the form of the Ministry of Education funds the VLN website. This website was initiated and is maintained by participating schools. There is information, and ideas about how to use technology, but it is up to individual schools to set their own policies for technology and internet use. There is no leadership or vision set by the government. (Barbour et al, 2011).
Pond - The Network for Learning Portal
This collaborative network for teachers, students, school administrators and service providers was established in 2014, with the idea that educators can share content and knowledge and engage with others. It is currently only available to school teachers, administrators and facilitators of schools who have signed up for Pond and organisations who contribute to the educational sector. This initiative is at the beginning stages and potentially will help teachers upskill and learn from others about how to best use the digital technology that they have available. (http://www.n4l.co.nz/pond/rollout/)
This also supports Siemens (2004), learning theory that he states is “ a model of learning that acknowledges the tectonic shifts in society where learning is no longer an internal, individualistic activity. …Connectivism provides insight into learning skills and tasks needed for learners to flourish in a digital era. (p. 1).
This will potentially encourage those with less motivational access to use digital technologies, as the time finding and accessing quality resources is reduced and the ability to interact with other educators trying to achieve similar goals is increased.
Usage Access:
E-learning is incorporated as part of effective pedagogy in the New Zealand curriculum as is documented to say, “ Schools should explore not only how ICT can supplement traditional ways of teaching but also how it can open up new and different ways of learning.” (Ministry of Education, 2007, p.34).
Teachers are encouraged to do this and evaluate their level of usage via the e-learning planning framework and its five dimensions. (below).
The New Zealand Government in the form of the Ministry of Education funds the VLN website. This website was initiated and is maintained by participating schools. There is information, and ideas about how to use technology, but it is up to individual schools to set their own policies for technology and internet use. There is no leadership or vision set by the government. (Barbour et al, 2011).
Pond - The Network for Learning Portal
This collaborative network for teachers, students, school administrators and service providers was established in 2014, with the idea that educators can share content and knowledge and engage with others. It is currently only available to school teachers, administrators and facilitators of schools who have signed up for Pond and organisations who contribute to the educational sector. This initiative is at the beginning stages and potentially will help teachers upskill and learn from others about how to best use the digital technology that they have available. (http://www.n4l.co.nz/pond/rollout/)
This also supports Siemens (2004), learning theory that he states is “ a model of learning that acknowledges the tectonic shifts in society where learning is no longer an internal, individualistic activity. …Connectivism provides insight into learning skills and tasks needed for learners to flourish in a digital era. (p. 1).
This will potentially encourage those with less motivational access to use digital technologies, as the time finding and accessing quality resources is reduced and the ability to interact with other educators trying to achieve similar goals is increased.
Usage Access:
E-learning is incorporated as part of effective pedagogy in the New Zealand curriculum as is documented to say, “ Schools should explore not only how ICT can supplement traditional ways of teaching but also how it can open up new and different ways of learning.” (Ministry of Education, 2007, p.34).
Teachers are encouraged to do this and evaluate their level of usage via the e-learning planning framework and its five dimensions. (below).
Image retrieved from www.elearning.tki.org.nz/Professional-learning/e-Learning-Planning-Framework.
Under each dimension there is further scaffolding of how to judge personal usage and that of the school, whanau, and students.
Again this is a great support for teachers to increase their usage, but only for those who are willing (motivated) and supported to take on what it has to offer.
Uptake of New Technologies
There is a vast range of technologies available. When school were surveyed on their use of future focused technologies such as 3D printing, interactive video, games and gamification, and Khan Academy there was little uptake by schools, although many schools had plans to look at them in the next 12-18 months. (Johnson, Wood, & Sutton, 2014). This suggests that schools are willing, but are affected by other factors such as time, and the necessary skills.
How does your current learning/working context fit into van Dijk's Access Gaps Model?
Head over to our discussions page to add your thoughts.
References
Adhikari, J., Parsons, D., & Mathrani, A. (2012, October). Bridging Digital Divides in the Learning Process: Challenges and Implications of Integrating ICTs. In mLearn (pp. 224-227).
Barbour, M., Brown, R., Hasler Waters, L., Hoey, R., Hunt, J. L., Kennedy, K., . . . Trimm, T. (2011). Online and blended learning: A survey of policy and practice from K-12 schools around the world (pp. 1-30). Vienna. VA: International Association for K-12 Online Learning.
Chubb, K. (2015). 2000 Schools Connect To N4L’s Managed Network. Retrieved from http://www.n4l.co.nz/2000-schools-connect-to-n4ls-managed-network/
Clement, D. (2015). Digital Learning - Coming Ready Or Not. Retrieved from http://ea.org.nz/all-stories/2013/7/18/digital-learning-coming-ready-or-not.html
Bilbiao-Osorio, B., Dutta, S., & Lanvin, V. (2014). The Global information technology report 2014: Rewards and Risks of Big Data. Retrieved from http://www.weforum.org/reports/global-information-technology-report-2014
Johnson, M., Wood,A., Sutton,P., (2014). Digital Technologies in New Zealand Schools: 2014 Report. A report prepared for the 2020 Communications Trust by Research New Zealand (pp. 88-105). Retrieved from
http://2020.org.nz/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/Digital-Technologies-in-School-2014-FINAL.pdf
Ministry of Education. (2007). The New Zealand Curriculum. Wellington, NZ: Learning Media.
Miniwatts Marketing Group. (2015). Internet World Stats. Retrieved from http://www.internetworldstats.com/stats.htm
Network For Learning (2015). Enabling e-learning: Ministry Initiatives. Retrieved from http://elearning.tki.org.nz/Ministry-initiatives/Connecting-to-the-N4L-Managed-Network/Overview
Network for Learning (2014). Pond Roll Out. Retrieved from http://www.n4l.co.nz/pond/rollout/
Siemens, G. (2004). Connectivism: A learning theory for the digital age. Retrieved from http://www.itdl.org/journal/jan_05/article01.htm
Van Dijk, J. (2012). The Evolution of the Divide: The Digital Divide turns to Inequality of skills and Usage. Digital Enlightenment Yearbook 2012. Retrieved from http://www.utwente.nl/bms/vandijk/news/The%20Evolution%20of%20the%20Digital%20Divide/Evolution%20of%20the%20Digital%20Divide%20Digital%20Enlightment%20Yearbook%202012.pdf
Wright, N. (2010). E-learning and implications for New Zealand schools: A literature review. Hamilton, New Zealand: The University of Waikato for the Ministry of Education. Retrieved from http://www.educationcounts.govt.nz.
Under each dimension there is further scaffolding of how to judge personal usage and that of the school, whanau, and students.
Again this is a great support for teachers to increase their usage, but only for those who are willing (motivated) and supported to take on what it has to offer.
Uptake of New Technologies
There is a vast range of technologies available. When school were surveyed on their use of future focused technologies such as 3D printing, interactive video, games and gamification, and Khan Academy there was little uptake by schools, although many schools had plans to look at them in the next 12-18 months. (Johnson, Wood, & Sutton, 2014). This suggests that schools are willing, but are affected by other factors such as time, and the necessary skills.
How does your current learning/working context fit into van Dijk's Access Gaps Model?
Head over to our discussions page to add your thoughts.
References
Adhikari, J., Parsons, D., & Mathrani, A. (2012, October). Bridging Digital Divides in the Learning Process: Challenges and Implications of Integrating ICTs. In mLearn (pp. 224-227).
Barbour, M., Brown, R., Hasler Waters, L., Hoey, R., Hunt, J. L., Kennedy, K., . . . Trimm, T. (2011). Online and blended learning: A survey of policy and practice from K-12 schools around the world (pp. 1-30). Vienna. VA: International Association for K-12 Online Learning.
Chubb, K. (2015). 2000 Schools Connect To N4L’s Managed Network. Retrieved from http://www.n4l.co.nz/2000-schools-connect-to-n4ls-managed-network/
Clement, D. (2015). Digital Learning - Coming Ready Or Not. Retrieved from http://ea.org.nz/all-stories/2013/7/18/digital-learning-coming-ready-or-not.html
Bilbiao-Osorio, B., Dutta, S., & Lanvin, V. (2014). The Global information technology report 2014: Rewards and Risks of Big Data. Retrieved from http://www.weforum.org/reports/global-information-technology-report-2014
Johnson, M., Wood,A., Sutton,P., (2014). Digital Technologies in New Zealand Schools: 2014 Report. A report prepared for the 2020 Communications Trust by Research New Zealand (pp. 88-105). Retrieved from
http://2020.org.nz/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/Digital-Technologies-in-School-2014-FINAL.pdf
Ministry of Education. (2007). The New Zealand Curriculum. Wellington, NZ: Learning Media.
Miniwatts Marketing Group. (2015). Internet World Stats. Retrieved from http://www.internetworldstats.com/stats.htm
Network For Learning (2015). Enabling e-learning: Ministry Initiatives. Retrieved from http://elearning.tki.org.nz/Ministry-initiatives/Connecting-to-the-N4L-Managed-Network/Overview
Network for Learning (2014). Pond Roll Out. Retrieved from http://www.n4l.co.nz/pond/rollout/
Siemens, G. (2004). Connectivism: A learning theory for the digital age. Retrieved from http://www.itdl.org/journal/jan_05/article01.htm
Van Dijk, J. (2012). The Evolution of the Divide: The Digital Divide turns to Inequality of skills and Usage. Digital Enlightenment Yearbook 2012. Retrieved from http://www.utwente.nl/bms/vandijk/news/The%20Evolution%20of%20the%20Digital%20Divide/Evolution%20of%20the%20Digital%20Divide%20Digital%20Enlightment%20Yearbook%202012.pdf
Wright, N. (2010). E-learning and implications for New Zealand schools: A literature review. Hamilton, New Zealand: The University of Waikato for the Ministry of Education. Retrieved from http://www.educationcounts.govt.nz.