Socioeconomic Inequality in Digital Learning Skills: Cross-National Evidence from Home and School Digital Environments

• In Event: Teaching in the Digital Age: Technology, Environment, and Equity

Abstract

This study investigates socioeconomic disparities in students’ digital learning skills—digital self-efficacy and critical online literacy—across 27 OECD countries using data from PISA 2022. Grounded in the concept of digital cultural capital, the analysis shows that both home and school digital environments account for a substantial share of SES-based gaps in digital skills. School-level factors—particularly the quality and pedagogical use of ICT—demonstrate stronger associations with outcomes than home-based factors. These relationships are consistent across socioeconomic groups. However, because access to high-quality digital learning environments remains uneven, the findings underscore the value of pedagogically purposeful ICT integration—especially at school—in supporting more equitable digital learning outcomes.

Author

• Seong Won Han, University at Buffalo - SUNY