Reply #154: I don't knowhow old you are,

[Ms. Toad]

But most people who are of the age to be parents did not grow up when internet was available in virtually every home or, perhaps more importantly, when teachers did not expect every student to have access to internet overnight, and did not make assignments that were due the next day which required research.

This expectation inherently hits harder on people living in poverty - unless their parents have spent some of their precious resources for the internet. In our town, it would be virtually impossible for a child to complete an assignment requiring research overnight - meaning that as a poverty tax, their grades are lower and their ability to work their way out of poverty that much harder.

Riding a bike to school is out - students are forbidden by school policy to ride bikes to school, so that makes the option of staying after school and working then riding home not an option.

There are no buses between our community and the closest library after 7 am in the morning. Can't really go to the library after getting home after school by taking a bus that won't pick you up until 7 am the next morning (and if you could get to the library it would be too late to do the research and get back to school on the bus that won't take you home until 5 pm.) AND the bus that serves our community is several miles from most members of the community. Riding a bike the library is pretty much out because the road the library is on would be far too dangerous for most students to ride on - as a seasoned bike rider, I regularly bike on relatively heavily trafficked roads and never feel safe riding on that particular road.

That leaves waiting for parents to come home after work and drive them during the time between arriving home, fixing dinner, and the close of the library - not really a realistic option - or expectation to place on parents already struggling to make ends meet.