Digital Divide or Participation Gap? How Mobile Devices are Affecting our Generation.

I believe that the digital divide does not genuinely exist in society right now. Yes, there are many students that do not have personal computers. However, I do not think this amount of people can even compare to the amount of people who do own their computer. Wi-fi is free, and laptops/computers are costing less and less the amount of money it has been priced at in the past. It is in fact more efficient and cheaper. This gives lower income students a wider chance of using their own personal computer. Not to mention, the amount of students who take out loans and use specific payment plans involving buying certain college supplies is rising in popularity as well. 

            Also, I do believe that the majority of universities offer services for these students that enable them to not be at a huge disadvantage for not having their own personal computer. For example, some provide free laptops after enrollment in the university. Others, like the University of Maryland, provide laptops available for rent for free for a certain amount of time. Their are also computer centers that offer hundreds of computer resources, printing resources, and more. So yes, many students may be at a disadvantage because they cannot write some papers or do research at home. However, the fact that many universities offer so many different resources should not be overlooked.

            I agree with some of Guidry's ideas of the participation gap. This is because their is simply a difference between those who are exposed to different tools on the internet/computer and those who are not. For example, he says, "Those with computers and internet access in their homes use tools such as Facebook and MySpace differently than teens who access the Internet from different locations such as school or the public library." This is true, because in a recent study it was shown that students in lower income areas use different websites like MySpace, where the higher income areas use Facebook. I definitely agree that demographic does play a role in the participation gap, because these are different communities. After all, these communities decide what is popular and what is not within their community.

            Students who do not have computers are indeed beginning to use alternatives to the traditional laptop/computer because they do not have access to it. According to the Pew Internet Research Project, "half (51%) of black cell internet users do most of their online browsing on their phone, double the proportion for whites (24%). Two in five Latino cell internet users also fall into the “cell-mostly” category." This shows how demographics and communities play a major role in internet browsing alternatives. The Pew Internet Research Project also found that, " Nearly half of all 18-29 year olds (45%) who use the internet on their cell phones do most of their online browsing on their mobile device." The younger audience, possibly enrolled in Universities, are more likely to use the internet on the mobile devices than older adults. This shows how many students use the mobile device as convenience because they have the resource if they are in college. Also, the rise in smartphones and better Internet operation on mobile devices are making their internet browsing more popular as well.