DIGITAL OPPORTUNITY FOR TENNESSEE’S YOUTH:FACT SHEET Download PDF |
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THE NEW WORKFORCE: BENEFITS OF BEING PREPARED WITH TECHNOLOGY SKILLS |
- At present, over half (56%) of employed Americans over age 18 use a computer at work.[1]
- Between 2004 and 2014, jobs in the information technology fields are expected to increase by about 30%, for an addition of over 1 million jobs nationally.[2]
- 27 out of every 1,000 private sector workers in Tennessee are employed by high-tech firms (48th highest rate in the nation).[3]
- Tennessee ranks 25th in the U.S. for overall number of high-tech workers and 37th for average high-tech wage.[4]
- In Tennessee, high-tech industry workers earn an average of $21,474 more per year than other private sector workers.[5]
HOW WIDE IS THE DIGITAL OPPORTUNITY GAP? |
- 71% of households in Tennessee earning less than $15,000 per year do not own a computer compared to 43% of all Tennessee's households and 38% of all households nationally.[6]
- 76% of households in Tennessee earning less than $15,000 per year do not use the Internet at home compared to 51% of all Tennessee's households and 45% of all households nationally.[7]
- 9% of households in Tennessee earning less than $15,000 per year have broadband compared to 18% of all Tennessee's households and 20% of all households nationally.[8]
- Among the 50 states and the District of Columbia, Tennessee ranks 43rd in percentage of households with a computer, 43rdin percentage of households with Internet access, and 24th in percentage of households with broadband access.[9]
ARE SCHOOLS EQUIPPING TODAY’S YOUTH? WHERE TENNESSEE STANDS |
- 24% of 4th graders and 36% of 8th graders in Tennessee scored below the basic level of math that is expected in their grade (national average is 19% and 30%, respectively).[10]
- There are 4.1 students for every Internet-connected computer in Tennessee's public schools; data are not available for this figure in high-poverty public schools (the national average is 3.7 and 3.8, respectively).[11]
- In 23% of schools in Tennessee, the majority of teachers (at least half) are "beginners" when it comes to using technology (the national average is 15%).[12]
- Tennessee is among the 34 states that has education technology standards by grade level.[13]
TENNESSEE'S YOUNG PEOPLE MOST IN NEED |
- Of the 1.4 million children in Tennessee, 286,000, or 20%, are living in poverty.[14] Among the 50 states and the District of Columbia, Tennessee ranks 12th in percentage of children living in poverty.[15]
- 36% of Tennessee's children live with parents who do not have full-time, year-round employment (the national average is 34%).[16]
- 11% of teens in Tennessee do not attend school and do not work (the national average is 8%).[17]
- Tennessee residents aged 20-24 have an unemployment rate of 8.2% (the state unemployment rate for all ages is 5.2%).[18]
March 2008
[1] U.S. Department of Commerce, Economics and Statistics Administration, Computer Use and Internet Use in the United States: 2003, Issued October 2005, Viewed March 5, 2008: 23-208. http://www.census.gov/prod/2005pubs/p23-208.pdf
[2] Jay Vesgo, BLS Current and Projected IT Employment Figures by Detailed Occupation, Computing Research Association, Revised January 13, 2006, Viewed March 10, 2008. http://www.cra.org/wp/index.php?p=71
[3] U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Covered Employment and Wages as reported in American Electronics Association, Cyberstates 2007: A State-by-State Overview of the High-Technology Industry. State rankings associated with footnotes #3-4 are based on data that includes Puerto Rico and Washington, DC, along with the fifty states. A ranking of #1 represents the best state; a ranking of #52 represents the worst. (Not available online.)
[6] U.S. Census Bureau, Current Population Survey: Computer and Internet Use 2003, special tabulation by the U.S. Department of Commerce. Calculation by The Children's Partnership. (2003 represents the most recent data available.)
[9] Ibid. Rankings calculated by The Children’s Partnership. A ranking of #1 represents the best state; a ranking of #51 represents the worst.
[10] U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 2007 Mathematics Assessment, as reported by The Annie E. Casey Foundation, Profiles by State, March 11, 2008. http://www.kidscount.org/sld/profile.jsp
[11] Market Data Retrieval, “2005-06 Public School Technology Survey,” and unpublished tabulations from MDR's Public School Technology Survey (2005), as reported in Education Week, Technology Counts 2007: A Digital Decade. This figure includes only computers that are available for student instruction. High-poverty schools refer to schools in which more than half the students are eligible for the federal free or reduced-price lunch program. March 6, 2008: 3.http://www.edweek.org/media/ew/tc/2007/TN_STR2007.pdf[12] Education Counts Custom Table Builder. Education Week, August 23, 2007. http://www.edweek.org/rc/2007/06/07/edcounts.html
[13] The Children's Partnership, review of the Department of Education Web sites for the 50 states, conducted December 2007.
[14] U.S. Census Bureau, Current Population Survey 2005 Annual Social and Economic Supplement, Revised November 2, 2006, Viewed March 5, 2008. http://pubdb3.census.gov/macro/032005/pov/new46_100125_03.htm
[15] Ibid. Rankings calculated by The Children's Partnership. A ranking of #1 represents the worst state (highest percentage of children living in poverty); a ranking of #51 represents the best (lowest percentage of children living in poverty).
[16]Population Reference Bureau, analysis of data from U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey, 2007 Kids Count Data Book, as reported by The Annie E. Casey Foundation, February 29, 2008: 51.http://www.aecf.org/upload/PublicationFiles/databook_2007.pdf
[18] U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics and U.S. Census Bureau, Current Population Survey: Local Area Unemployment Statistics, Preliminary 2006 Data on Employment Status by State and Demographic Group, March 5, 2008: 3-53.http://www.bls.gov/lau/ptable14full2006.pdf
