Home computing and digital equity in education: a Hong Kong story

Abstract

This paper seeks to examine the gender and socioeconomic differences in students’ use of information and communication technology (ICT) at home. It presents research findings of a territory-wide survey of 826 eighth-graders from 36 secondary schools in Hong Kong. Results indicate that significant gender as well as socioeconomic effects on students’ home computing, in particular SES differences in access and use, learning-related usage, and parenting practices in encouragement, and gender differences in learning-related usage, and parenting practices in encouragement and worry. This raises the question of whether the digital inequity has been resolved at a time when education policy makers and schools have already committed to taking bold steps to extensively utilize ICT in education in Hong Kong.