Getting free internet is hard for poor students despite provider promises, survey finds
Tamara Solis faced a choice when it came to her children’s education: Pay for rent and food or pay for internet access. Broadband came in second, so she takes her kids to a friend’s garage apartment in Watts for internet — where they do their schoolwork in close quarters amid the coronavirus pandemic.
“It’s a small place,” said Solis, noting that it was difficult to abide by recommended physical distancing guidelines. “We try to do the best — one on the table, one on the sofa, one on the bed ... but it’s not big enough to keep far away.”
Her plight is not unique.
Despite promises of help, families in the low-income neighborhoods of Watts, Boyle Heights and South Los Angeles have struggled to get online, with at least 16% of students lacking basic internet access, according to a survey of public school families in those communities released Wednesday by the nonprofit Partnership for Los Angeles Schools.
Many more students likely lack the high-speed internet connection needed for regular online academic work, according to the organization, which manages 18 L.A. Unified campuses that enroll large numbers of black and Latino students who are members of low-income families.
The survey, conducted March 24 through April 4, also recorded other areas of concern: 15% of families reported that students had not yet been in contact with teachers, and 25% said students needed to print out materials at home for their assignments, but they lacked a printer. CONTINUE READING: Amid coronavirus, internet is hard for poor students to find - Los Angeles Times
