Give two groups the same new technology and the gap between them usually grows. Nobody is excluded and nobody is targeted — the group that already had more converts it into more.
Equal access meeting unequal ability to convert it — and the three places an intervention can go.
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What turning a tool into an advantage needs
- Time that is not already spoken for, which is the resource most unevenly distributed of all.
- Skills to use it beyond the basics, which are learned from people around you rather than from the tool.
- Contacts who can act on what you produce, since a good application still has to reach somebody.
- Room to fail, because trying something that might not work is only possible if failure is affordable.
The pattern to expect: A widening gap after a neutral technology arrives is the normal result rather than the surprising one. An HL answer that treats it as an accident has misread the mechanism.
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Take timed mock exams and get detailed feedback on every answer. See exactly where you're losing marks.
Real-world examples you can name
The people still offline — ITU Facts and Figures — 2023 estimate
The International Telecommunication Union estimated roughly 2.6 billion people had never used the internet, with the gap concentrated in low-income countries and, within countries, among women, rural populations and older people.
Who it affected: About a third of humanity, who cannot reach services the rest treat as default.
M-Pesa mobile money — launched 2007
Money is sent as a text message and cashed in or out at a local agent, so a phone becomes a bank account without a bank. Research has linked it to households moving out of extreme poverty, particularly those headed by women.
Who it affected: People with a phone but no bank branch within reach.
Starlink satellite internet in Ukraine — from February 2022
Low-earth-orbit satellite terminals restored connectivity where ground infrastructure had been destroyed. Because coverage decisions rested with a single private company, they also became decisions about the conduct of a war.
Who it affected: Ukrainian civilians and military units relying on the link.
| Lever | What it reaches | Why it is chosen anyway |
|---|---|---|
| Give access | The first divide only | It is countable, so it can be reported |
| Build ability to convert | The second divide | Slow, and hard to show in a photograph |
| Change what it rewards | Everybody at once | It requires changing the system, not the people |
How this is tested — HL asks you to choose an intervention and defend it, and the defence is where the marks are. It comes up two ways:
Paper 1 Section B — extended response
- Extended response on a global challenge
- Concepts used explicitly rather than implied
Paper 3 — the intervention paper
- Recommend an intervention for a described situation
- Justify it, including what it will not reach
The trap: the countable intervention: Handing out devices is easy to measure and changes least. Say why you are aiming somewhere harder to count.
Explain one reason why equal access to a technology can widen inequality.
Model answer plan
See the mark-by-mark plan — for / against / judgement, with marking guidance — in study mode.
Recommend one intervention to reduce digital inequality in a country, and justify it.
Model answer plan
See the mark-by-mark plan — for / against / judgement, with marking guidance — in study mode.