DIGITAL INEQUALITIES BETWEEN THE RURAL AND URBAN STUDENTS IN MALAYSIA
Dr. Jeffri bin Idris, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Hj. Laili bin Hj. Hashim, Aida Wati binti Zainan Abidin

Abstract
This article reports on a study carried out among the secondary school students in Malaysia. The main aim of this study was to determine the extent of digital inequalities, also known as digital divide between the rural and urban students in the country. This is because ICT is considered as an important tool for learning. Unfortunately, not all students have the opportunity to have access to ICT especially those in rural areas. In this study, the divide was assessed based on four types of digital inequalities namely, the divide in terms of having an access to the computer at home, the divide in terms of having a computer with an Internet access at home, the divide in ICT skills and the divide in the frequency of using the ICT. Eighty schools from all over the country were randomly identified and 1200 survey questionnaires were sent to the schools. The findings revealed that digital inequalities between the two geographical areas existed in all the four types of digital divide. It was discovered that the rural students were mostly left behind in having the opportunity to access and use the ICT. They were also less competent in using the ICT compared with the students in urban schools.

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