Wednesday, September 9, 2020 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon
5
The internet access gap is wide — and has an impact
By Sue Stafford
Correspondent
The COVID-19 pandemic
has shone a bright and broad
light on how much the aver-
age American relies on the
internet. The gap between
who has access to the inter-
net and who doesn9t has been
highlighted.
<The COVID-19 crisis
has revealed that Americans
everywhere need universal,
reliable, affordable, and high-
speed internet to do their jobs
and participate equally in
remote school learning,= said
Sally Jewell, former Interior
Secretary under President
Obama. <Thirty-nine percent
of households, roughly 23
million Americans, do not
have access to high-speed
internet.=
In a study done by
Microsoft, they found the
percentage to be much
higher because of the way
the Federal Communications
Commission (FCC) calcu-
lates users, using census
blocks which are not terribly
accurate for a study like this.
Broadband access, or
lack thereof, impacts educa-
tion, healthcare, agriculture,
small and large businesses,
social connections, emer-
gency/weather notifications,
entertainment and support
of sustainable jobs for rural,
low-income urban, and tribal
inhabitants. For those who
can9t access the internet due
to lack of infrastructure and/
or expense of equipment and
service, they are at a distinct
disadvantage in many areas
of their lives. COVID-19
has exacerbated issues of
connectivity.
Telemedicine has proven
to be a valuable tool in the
field of healthcare during
this time of pandemic and
will likely change the face
of medical care long after
the coronavirus pandemic is
tamed. For people who live
a long distance from their
healthcare providers or are
unable to leave home due to
age or infirmity, telemedicine
brings the necessary contact
with their doctors into their
homes.
The shutdown of the
schools from pre-K through
college due to COVID-19
has presented a daunting
challenge to educators and
students. The virtual class-
room has become the norm,
at least temporarily. But for
those teachers and students
without available internet ser-
vice, they are shut out of the
classroom.
Some schools have pre-
pared study packets but with
no virtual in-class time with
their teacher and other stu-
dents, learning, socializing,
and with the ability to ask
questions, the education of
those students lacking inter-
net connection is greatly
hampered.
Based on another study,
depending on locale, it is esti-
mated that anywhere from
40-70 percent of residents
lack connectivity, illustrat-
ing how a public health cri-
sis has brought to light a
technological one. Millions
of Americans lack basic
broadband or simply can9t
afford it. Nearly one in five
students between kindergar-
ten and 12th grade do not
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have computers or fast web
connections, according to
data compiled by the Pew
Research Center in 2018.
This gap disproportionately
plagues low-income families
and people of color. The con-
sequences of the gap between
those who have access to vir-
tual learning and those who
do not may be felt for years
to come.
The Sisters School District
makes sure that every student
without a computer receives
a Chromebook, and, if they
don9t have internet availabil-
ity, they are provided with a
personal hotspot. That pro-
gram was started several
years ago with a grant of
$10,000 from Hoodoo Ski
Area and is now a part of the
district9s operating budget.
This fall, the virtual
classrooms will follow a set
schedule with attendance
taken every day. There are
two sections of three core
classes that meet online twice
a week in the morning. On
Friday, teachers are available
online to answer questions
from students, provide extra
help, and provide parent edu-
cation on how to help their
students. Last spring, when
the schools first closed due
to the coronavirus, a number
of local Sisters businesses
began offering Wi-Fi access
to students who didn9t have it
available.
Internet connectivity pro-
vides farmers and ranchers
with important information
regarding weather predictions
and warnings, government
programs, advances in crops
and cultivation, new infor-
mation on plant and animal
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diseases, connections to their
neighbors, and the ability to
do banking and other busi-
ness functions, avoiding long
drives into town. Some of the
newer farm equipment has
AI (artificial intelligence)
embedded, operating entirely
from a hand-held device,
improving the viability of the
farmers9 operations.
As COVID-19 spread
across the county, the sup-
ply chain from farm to con-
sumer began to weaken.
Without internet, the farmers
who have the food can9t eas-
ily connect with suppliers.
Without internet, they can9t
turn on a dime to make nec-
essary adjustments.
Government offi-
cials and farm and ranch
representatives believe that
the food producers9 ability
to thrive is reliant on reliable
access to broadband, not only
for their businesses but for
healthcare and their children9s
education. One official stated
that internet access is the life
blood of their operations, as it
is for many businesses.
For those who can do their
jobs from home, the internet
acts as an economic lifeline.
For those unable to go to
work during the pandemic, if
they could do work online but
don9t have internet connectiv-
ity, working from home is not
a possibility. The increased
use of home computers dur-
ing the pandemic has created
problems for some users 4 a
story for another day.
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