Classroom

Google Helps Close the Homework Gap with Afterschool Program Support

The tech giant's $500,000 grant will give underprivileged students the access to the same tech as their peers.

Meghan Bogardus Cortez

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Meghan is an associate editor with EdTech. She enjoys coffee, cats and science fiction TV.

Efforts to close the digital divide at the school level have been largely successful, but for many students, the divide in connectivity still exists at home.

In an effort to tackle this homework gap, Google has extended a $500,000 grant and support to the National AfterSchool Association to help deliver ed tech to students in underserved communities.

"We believe that afterschool programs can play a big role in closing this gap, but they often need more support and guidance in order to do," writes NAA president and CEO Gina Warner in a Google blog post.

Google's support will allow the NAA to provide the 4 million students they serve with opportunities to access the same tools as their peers.

NAA has also commissioned a research review looking into the efficacy of afterschool programs. So far, their research has shown that afterschool programs can offer deeper digital learning experiences.

Volunteers from Google will also be helping to create toolkits and training resources for these programs, which will be on the NAA site.