Logged Out: How COVID-19 School Closures Deepened Educational Poverty in Italy

This paper examines how the digital divide intensified educational inequalities in Italy after the unplanned transition to remote teaching during the COVID-19 pandemic. It distinguishes three phases: the pre-pandemic baseline of 2018–2019, the pandemic shock of 2020–2021, and post-pandemic evidence on educational outcomes. Combining micro-andmacro-leveldata onsocioeconomicstatus, territorial disparities, digital access, and student achievement, the study shows that remote teaching was not a neutral emergency response. Instead, it magnified pre-existing inequalities, especiallyalongItaly’sNorth–Southdivide. Studentsfromdisadvantaged households and Southern regions faced greater barriers to devices, connectivity, and adequate learning environments. The findings suggest that digital exclusion operated as a structural mechanism through which social and territorial inequalities were reproduced, translating unequal access to technology into unequal learning opportunities and, ultimately, into deeper forms of educational poverty.