Now that more students have devices and access to technology, educators and school leaders must work to reduce the digital divide through use equity. If students are not exposed to technology and taught how to use it, they will fall behind their peers.

“Educators need to make sure that login is a very easy and smooth process,” says Highfill. “Once everyone is logged in, the number one thing students have to learn how to do is share their screens.”

Not only does this help solve problems with students, she says, it also helps them take a more active role in their learning. Students can discover new ways to achieve goals and interact with technology, and share their screens to show the class (and teachers) how they’ve achieved it. “You empower them and give them a role in education,” adds Hyfil.

What are the benefits of technology for students?

Through technology, schools can support all students. Pleasanton Virtual Academy has approximately 60 elementary school students and her nearly 250 high school students. “We are very excited that our school district has made that investment,” he says. “We are a public school virtual academy. They have invested in a quality virtual academy to meet the needs of all students.”

Even students studying in a face-to-face environment use technology in their daily lives. Integrating it into the classroom provides an opportunity to learn to use technology in meaningful ways.

read more: Incorporate digital citizenship themes into teaching and business planning.

“If you have the skills and know how to research and find information and determine if that information is true or not, it will help you not just in school, but in life in general,” says Lim.

“I watch my kids, and they’re addicted to their devices,” says Highfill. “So this is my new teaching point: How can you go on a digital diet, and if technology isn’t doing you good, how can you identify it?”

Highfill says educators should use technology whenever they feel uncomfortable introducing it into the classroom. “If students use technology, we have to teach them how to take care of themselves,” she says.