"Striking" income disparity cited in access to classroom technology Teachers are increasingly relying on laptops and mobile technology in middle and high school classrooms nationwide but there is a "striking" disparity in access to the latest technology between lower and higher income students and school districts, according to a new study. The new survey by the Pew Research Center finds that 92 percent of middle and high school teachers say the Internet has a "major impact" on their ability to access resources in the classroom. Nearly three out of four teachers say cell phones are used for class work. Kristen Purcell, associate director for research at Pew Research Center, said laptops and desktop computers are not the only devices being used to access the web. "More than four in ten told us that tablet computers are now part of their classroom environment or assignments and e-readers as well," Purcell said. However, while tablets and e-readers have become key tools for teachers, their classroom prevalence is apparently driven by economics. The survey found that only 37 percent of teachers of low income students use tablet computers compared to 56 percent of teachers of the highest income students. Similarly, 52 percent of teachers of upper and upper-middle income students say their students use cell phones as a learning device in class, compared with 35 percent of teachers of the lowest income students. Furthermore, teachers of the lowest income students are more than twice as likely as teachers of the highest income students to cite lack of access to digital technologies as a "major challenge" to their teaching. Pew's findings come from an online survey of more than 2,400 middle and high school teachers in the U.S., Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The survey was bolstered by a series of focus groups with teachers and high school students conducted between November 2011 and February 2012.