As K–12 administrators work to improve digital equity for their students, they must ensure students have the devices and internet connections needed to continue learning outside of school buildings.

But, experts say, the conversation doesn’t go far enough if it starts and stops with access.

“We have all now realized the critical importance of making sure that every single student has access to these pieces, not just at school but also outside of school for the opportunities of 24/7 learning. But that’s really just the first piece,” Beth Holland, director of the Consortium for School Networking’s Digital Equity Project, said at CoSN2020, the organization’s annual conference.

Even with one-to-one device programs, there are wide variations within districts, schools and even classrooms when it comes to the conditions under which students engage in remote learning. Examples include home noise levels, physical safety, household responsibilities such as caring for siblings, and the presence of an adult who can help with classwork or troubleshoot technical difficulties. Some educators have also struggled to accommodate students with disabilities and English language learners during remote learning.

As experts pointed out at CoSN2020, the implementation decisions administrators and teachers make can also affect equity in remote learning. Disparities in the quality of the work teachers assign and the amounts of time students have to engage in meaningful discussions with teachers and peers also weaken equity.

Holland led a discussion specifically about digital equity, but in numerous sessions, administrators, educators and other presenters noted issues of equity as well as schools’ holistic needs beyond instruction and operations. The latest results of CoSN’s annual IT leadership survey help explain why: 96 percent of IT leaders consider digital equity a priority, the report states.

More than half of U.S. school districts have one-to-one computing programs, and many of the rest come close.

But, as Holland said, digital equity is more than “home access or digital access or even the homework gap.

“How are we really creating equity of opportunity?”