Student Technology and Connectivity — OSPI Data Collections from School Districts
Summary
An OSPI document titled Student Technology and Connectivity, summarizing four data collections from school districts about students' technology access since school facilities closed on March 17th. It states that the data collections were not carried out with adequate time for all districts to respond, so OSPI created statewide estimates by a weighted adjustment using student enrollment counts, and that districts' interpretations may have varied. It states that at the start of the 2020-21 school year between 80-89% of students have adequate technology and connectivity to learn remotely, and that in August 74% (estimated 820,000 students statewide) had a district-owned device for use at home.
Summary drafted by a model from the document's text below and checked by script against that text before publication. It is a navigation aid, not a reading of what the document proves. Where AI is used
Cite this document
“Student Technology and Connectivity — OSPI Data Collections from School Districts.”
Archived at Pandemic Darlings, https://pandemicdarlings.com/source-documents/2020-09-30-a26949-d223616-ospi-student-technology-and-connectivity-bf0eb93b33/
, SHA-256 0e3e7f759e41dede15c74c410b04a4ff461c88594f28e44cddd7908ee4bfb4ff.Full text
Student Technology and
Connectivity
Introduction
Since school facilities closed on March 17th, OSPI has initiated a number of data collections
from school districts to inform topics that were not included in our standard ongoing data
collections. Summary statements about some of the data (below) and the associated Excel file
are a compilation of four of these data collections related to technological access for students
(see Table 1: Data Source Overview). The data collections were not carried out with adequate
time for all districts to respond, so OSPI has created statewide estimates via a weighted
adjustment using student enrollment counts. Districts were asked to provide estimates, and
their interpretations of questions as well as availability of precise information may have varied.
Therefore, one should use caution when interpreting these data, particularly when attributing
precision or in looking at specific district information.
Data Source Overview
Percent of
Number of Students
Reporting
Data Sources Districts Enrolled in Intended Use
Timeframe
Responding Responding
Districts
Weekly data
Spring Survey:
Week of April 12 collection
Week of April 12– 237 76%
through April 18 during facilities
18
closures
Weekly data
Spring Survey:
Week of May 17 collection
Week of May 17– 263 86%
through May 23 during facilities
23
closures
Component of
Reopening WA Start of 2020–
294 92% district
Schools 2021 School Year
reopening plans
Inform
Home Digital August 2020–
134 62% connectivity
Access September 2020
RFP
Internet and Device Access
At the start of the 2020–21 school year, between 80–89% of students have adequate
technology and connectivity to learn remotely. If we assume it is 84%, a middle part of
that range, then around 960,000 students statewide have adequate technology and
connectivity to learn remotely at the start of the 2020–21 school year. Conversely, an
estimated 16% (estimated 184,000 students statewide) do not have adequate
technology and connectivity.
Data Source and Calculations:
• Reopening WA Schools—Start of the 2020–21 school year
o Please identify the percentage of students that you believe have adequate
technology and connectivity to learn remotely during the 2020–21 school year
• Districts were asked to select a response from the following options: 0–30%, 31–40%,
41–50%, 51–60%, 61–70%, 71–80%, 81–90%, 91–100%
• Percentages were converted to counts based on April 1st CEDARS enrollment.
• The statewide estimate assumes that reporting districts are representative of all
districts.
Internet Access
Several factors result in a margin of error around student connectivity estimates. Districts may
have made estimates without current information from families, some districts were not able
to complete the survey within the timeline, and calculation methods can have a minor impact
on totals. The data cited below reflect the information collected in the different surveys.
When school facilities closed in March, 76% of students (estimated 870,000 students
statewide) had adequate internet access.
Data Source and Calculations:
• Home Digital Access Data Collection
o What percentage of students do you estimate had adequate internet services
when school facilities closed in March?
• Percentages were converted to counts based on April 1st CEDARS enrollment.
• The statewide estimate assumes that reporting districts are representative of all
districts.
In May, an estimated 81% of students had reliable broadband internet connectivity.
Data Source and Calculations:
• Spring Survey—May 17 through May 23
o What percentage of your students do you estimate have reliable broadband
(high-speed) internet connectivity adequate to support synchronous online
learning (real-time video) from home?
• The estimate assumes that reporting districts are representative of all districts.
In August, reporting districts indicated 74% of students had adequate internet to
support synchronous online learning. Around 18% of students had internet that was
inadequate for synchronous online learning and 8% did not have internet.
Data Source and Calculations:
• Home Digital Access Data Collection—August
o Of enrolled students, how many do not have internet access?
o Of enrolled students, how many do you estimate have adequate internet access
to support synchronous online learning?
o Of enrolled students, how many do you estimate have inadequate internet
access to support synchronous online learning?
• Percentage is based on the numbers of students reported within these three questions.
At the start of the 2020-21 school year, an estimated 80-89% of students had adequate
technology and connectivity to learn remotely. (see above in “Internet and Device Access”)
Devices and Access
In April, 84% of students (estimated 965,000 students statewide) had a device adequate
for online learning. Conversely, 16% of students (estimated 184,000 students statewide)
did not have a device adequate for online learning.
Data Source and Calculations:
• Spring Survey—May 17 through May 23
o What percentage of your students do you estimate currently have a device
(district-issued or owned by the student) at home that is adequate for online
learning?
• Percentages were converted to counts based on April 1st CEDARS enrollment.
• The statewide estimate assumes that reporting districts are representative of all
districts.
In August, an estimated 3% of students (estimated 30,000 statewide) did not have a
learning device available. An additional 10% of students (estimated 115,000 statewide)
were thought to be sharing a learning device.
Data Source and Calculations:
• Home Digital Access Data Collection
o Of enrolled students, how many do you estimate have no device available?
• Percentage is based on student enrollment counts for the 2020–2021 reported by
districts in the Home Digital Access Data Collection.
• The statewide estimate assumes that reporting districts are representative of all
districts.
District-Issued Devices
In April, 48% of students (estimated 545,000 students statewide) had a district-issued
device to use at home.
Data Source and Calculations:
• Spring Survey—April 12 through April 18
o Of the students who have a desktop or laptop computer at home, please
estimate the percentage that are district-owned.
• Percentages were converted to counts based on April 1st CEDARS enrollment.
• The statewide estimate assumes that reporting districts are representative of all
districts.
In May, 61% of students (estimated 705,000 students statewide) had a district-issued
device to use at home.
Data Source and Calculations:
• Spring Survey—May 17 through May 23
o What percentage of your students do you estimate currently have a district-
issued device to use at home?
• Percentages were converted to counts based on April 1st CEDARS enrollment.
• The statewide estimate assumes that reporting districts are representative of all
districts.
In August, 74% (estimated 820,000 students statewide) had a district-owned device for
use at home.
Data Source and Calculations:
• Home Digital Access Data Collection
o Of enrolled students, how many do you estimate have a school/district-owned
learning device for use at home?
• Percentage is based on student enrollment counts for the 2020–2021 reported by
districts in the Home Digital Access Data Collection.
• The statewide estimate assumes that reporting districts are representative of all
districts.
File and source
- File
- 2020-09-30_a26949_d223616_ospi-student-technology-and-connectivity.pdf
- Size
- 173,851 bytes
- SHA-256
- 0e3e7f759e41dede15c74c410b04a4ff461c88594f28e44cddd7908ee4bfb4ff
- Original
- No public link identified.