Digital inequality in education: Features of manifestation and types of discrimination during COVID-19 pandemic

The article is devoted to the analysis of the features of the manifestation of digital inequality in education during COVID-19 pandemic. It analyzes the definitions, levels and criteria for assessing the digital divide. We consider current examples of digital divide in education at the following levels: divide in access to information technology (IT), divide in the degree of IT possession, divide in the ability to refuse the use of IT. According to these levels, possible types of discrimination against students and teachers are presented. These types include established features and new features resulting from the pandemic, in particular, discrimination based on the possession of a certificate of vaccination against a new coronavirus infection. In addition, the identified signs of discrimination are widely manifested even after the normalization of the epidemiological situation in the world. It is noted that the lack of proper anti-discrimination impact in education can lead to global negative consequences, including a decrease in the competitiveness of national economies, as well as a decline in the overall level of culture and morality.