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A company that manufacturers secure personal cell phones for children is making a move to education, where it has introduced secure, internet-enabled mobile handheld devices for classroom use. School teachers or administrators can program the devices to allow (or disallow) calling or texting during certain times of the day, making them ideal for educational use, the company says

“There is recognition that we can leverage capabilities and technologies … by providing mobile learning devices for students with controls for schools,”

Data from Project Tomorrow’s 2010 Speak Up Survey indicate that 67 percent of parents support their child using mobile devices in the classroom for school work, although 65 percent of school administrators in the same survey strongly objected to letting students use their own mobile devices in school.

"As the use of emerging technologies in the classroom increases, schools at all levels must ensure equal access to the educational benefits and opportunities afforded by the technology and equal treatment in the use of the technology for all students, including students with disabilities," wrote Russlynn Ali, assistant secretary for civil rights for the Department of Education.

Schools need to "think about on the front end whether the device is fully accessible,"

"If it's used to further the achievement gap and further the opportunity gap...we should prevent that on the front end."