California is short 1 million laptops and hot spots for kids as it prepares online school
Most California schools are now required to start online this fall. They need another 1 million technology devices to help kids learn.
When COVID-19 forced schools to close across California in March, state education officials estimated that 1.2 million students — 20 percent of the total K-12 population — didn’t have the technology necessary to participate in distance learning.
To solve that problem, California needs to procure over 700,000 computers and more than 300,000 WiFi hot spots, according to the most recent results from the California Department of Education’s school district survey.
The price tag? $500 million.
July’s totals are a significant jump from earlier estimates, which put California’s need at 150,000 total devices in March, and then 400,000 computers and 290,000 hotspots in late April.
It’s also likely a significant underestimate of current need, said department of education spokeswoman Cynthia Butler, noting that survey results do not reflect the need for replacement devices, devices for new students or devices in school districts that did not respond.
California has made some progress since March. But the state’s current distribution totals — 73,065 computers, purchased through the Bridging the Digital Divide Fund, and 86,848 hot spots — don’t satisfy even the earliest estimated need. Officials are focusing on districts with the greatest device shortages, Butler said.
“We understand that for students to fully engage in distance learning, they need access to technology,” Butler told The Sacramento Bee. “We continue to work with technology companies, internet service providers and the governor’s office to ensure that learning continues for all of our 6.2 million students.”
The state’s digital divide task force, chaired by state Superintendent Tony Thurmond and Sen. Connie Leyva, D-Chino, is scheduled to meet on Thursday to provide updates on those efforts as well as additional guidance on COVID-19 relief funding to available to school districts in this year’s budget. The budget allocates $5.3 billion to local educational agencies to support distance learning, including technology purchases.
Private donors have stepped up to support state-led efforts. Google and T-Mobile have given California students an additional 100,000 hotspots, Butler said, and state officials will distribute an additional 37,000 donor-pledged laptops before school starts in August.
Another 20,000 devices will come from a $5 million fund from the California Public Utilities Commission, which in April made $25 million available to increase broadband access.
If schools can’t solve the technology program in time, teachers may have to opt for alternative methods of connecting with students.
For example, West Sacramento Teachers Association president and first grade teacher Douglas Knepp says that his fall instruction plans may include a combination of pen-and-paper work and personal phone calls. His school district only has enough computers for students above third grade.
This story was originally published July 22, 2020 at 4:13 PM with the headline "California is short 1 million laptops and hot spots for kids as it prepares online school."