Foreword
This research addresses an issue that concerns all of us, relating directly to the vitality of public education and to the future of our democratic society. Presented in this study is further evidence of the continuing negative impacts on the academic achievement of those students lacking home access to the Internet and the educational resources recognized as necessary for an adequate education. Those students in secondary education without Internet access at home are disadvantaged—a scenario that strikes at the foundations of public education.
Explicit in the rationale for public education in the United States is the preparation of a knowledgeable society who will ensure the preservation of their social structure. This intent was clear in the words of one of this country’s notable founders, Thomas Jefferson, who stated “I know no safe depository of the ultimate powers of the society but the people themselves; and if we think them not enlightened enough to exercise their control with a wholesome discretion, the remedy is not to take it from them, but to inform them their discretion by education” (Thomas Jefferson to William C. Jarvis, 1820).
There is a strong correlation between a literate citizenry and a successful democracy. Public education, recognizing that education is the bedrock of any successful democracy, strives to develop a literate citizenry—one that can think for itself, reason, critique, and analyze.