Digital Divide

The gap between those who have access to and can effectively use digital technologies and those who cannot, typically divided along lines of income, geography, disability, age, and education. The digital divide disproportionately affects people with disabilities in the Global South, where compounded barriers of poverty, infrastructure limitations, and disability create multiple layers of exclusion. Research shows that in Indian schools for the blind, internet access ranges from 17% to 55% across states, many teachers lack personal smartphones, and institutional policies actively restrict technology use — creating a digital divide within already marginalized educational settings.