Home learning: Up to 100,000 students missing out because they don’t have suitable device

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As many as 100,000 students risk falling behind with their studies because they do not have suitable devices or internet access at home, the Association of Colleges (AoC) has revealed.

The AoC also said that more than two thirds of colleges expressed concern about their pupils’ loss of learning this year.

The findings come after colleges were excluded from a government laptop scheme for under 16s that was introduced during the first lockdown.

Although a 16 to 19 bursary fund was made available from April to July, the AoC said that it “did not support the numbers in need”.

As a result, the organisation is calling on the government to offer a “renewed support package” to students from disadvantaged backgrounds.

Without such help, the organisation fears that the gulf in educational opportunity between these students and their peers will continue to widen.

“The country’s poorest and most disadvantaged young people are at risk of falling further behind as a mixture of blended learning (online lessons and face-to-face) becomes the norm for many courses,” the organisation said in a statement.

It also warned that digital poverty could lead to students being cut off from their friends, family and teachers.

David Huges, the chief executive of AoC, said: “The legacy of lockdown must not be a generation of learners who have lost out because of digital poverty. Without immediate support for colleges to allow students to get the devices and access they need; we risk stunting the life chances of young people for years to come. “

He added that the government must do more to guarantee that every student, regardless of their socioeconomic background, can engage in effective online learning.

Last week, six leading charities wrote to the government urging it to address child poverty, which has risen by 600,000 in the last seven years and now affects three in 10 children.

Their letter pointed out the harm caused by digital poverty, adding that the problem was “especially acute” for children from black and minority ethnic communities.