Introduction. Educational disparities among rural and urban areas have been a significant issue and require the emphasis of recent literature and policymakers. This study aims to address a critical gap in the literature by examining the role of digital inequality in perpetuating educational disparities between rural and urban areas in China. Specifically, it explores how the lack of digital adoptability and digital skills mediates this relationship, highlighting the urgent need for targeted interventions in educational institutions. Study Participants and Methods. The study gathered data from the students of selected educational institutions using questionnaires. The researchers have sent 602 surveys in rural schools and 523 in urban schools but after one month only 357 (59.30%) valid responses were received from rural schools and 290 (55.45%) received from urban schools. The study also used Smart-PLS to examine the association between the understudy variables. Results. The outcomes indicated that digital inequality has a positive association with a lack of digital adoptability (β = 0.459, p<.00) and a lack of digital skills (β = 0.601, p<.00), and both have a positive association with educational disparities (β = 0.319, p<.00) and (β = 0.569, p<.00) in rural areas but a negative association among variables in urban areas in China. The outcomes also exposed that the lack of digital adoptability and lack of digital skills positively mediates between digital inequality (β = 0.146, p<.00) and educational disparities (β = 0.342, p<.00) in rural areas but negatively mediates in urban areas in China. Discussion. The study guides policymakers in establishing policies to reduce educational disparities in urban and rural areas by providing digital technology and skills in rural areas. Conclusion. This study highlights the impact of digital inequality on educational disparities between rural and urban areas in China. It emphasizes the mediating role of digital adoptability and skills in this relationship. The findings offer insights for policymakers to bridge educational gaps by improving digital infrastructure and skill development in rural regions.
Bi et al. (Mon,) studied this question.