Online Professional Development for Child Care Providers: Do They Have Appropriate Access to and Comfort with the Internet?

With the expansion of online trainings today, Extension professionals have an opportunity to reach child care providers in more convenient ways. However, having convenient, reliable Internet access can be a barrier to online training for some child care providers, especially those with limited financial resources. This study investigated child care providers’ ability to access online training through convenient, reliable Internet access by asking 494 child care providers in Georgia about their access to and comfort with the Internet. Participants completed a brief 12-question survey that included questions about their Internet access and use for both personal and professional purposes (i.e., whether or not they have Internet access, where they have access, how often they use it, and how comfortable they feel using it). The majority of child care providers reported having Internet access (89.68%) and feeling comfortable using the Internet (68.62%), and therefore, have the technological resources to participate in online professional development.