Tablets for every Fife schoolchild from P6 upwards could be issued next year

Every Fife school pupil from P6 to S6 could be given their own tablet in the next academic year.

Fife Council intends to distribute over 35,000 devices to pupils and teachers at a cost estimated to be between £13 and £16 million.

It’s hoped pupils will get the tablets during the 2025/26 academic year. The first devices – possibly iPads – could be issued to pupils in August next year and to teachers in May.

Fife Council leader David Ross admitted the local authority is yet to find the money for the ambitious provision.

But he said that it is not just desirable but “essential” for education and number one priority for new investment.

Fife school tablets will ensure digital inclusion

Pupils at Woodmill and St Columba’s high schools in Dunfermline have had Chromebooks for two years to test what is known as 1:1 digital provision.

On Monday they tried out the iPads could be purchased or leased as details of the scheme were revealed.

Woodmill pupil Natan Kempa, S6, said: “They look really good and they work really quickly which is good if you have a lot of schoolwork to do. It won’t take long to load.”

Fellow S6 pupil Hannah McRitchie uses her Chromebook daily.

She said: “You have all your stuff in one place. It’s so much easier, and it’s so accessible

“We use them in most of our classes now and they’re also good to take home.

“It will make a massive difference for people [to have a device], especially for S1s, who have to take every single subject. It will mean they don’t have to carry around lots of jotters in their bags everyday.”

George Foxlow, also in S6, agreed. “It has made life so much easier, everything is accessible.

“All our lessons we can find online and if we want to ask a question during our own time or study periods we can go on and ask.”

Council education spokesperson Cara Hilton has two children at Woodmill High School.

She said: “It’s been absolutely transformative in terms of being able to do their homework, being able to revise for exams, to be able to learn wherever they are.

“It’s also simple things like their bags are no longer weighed down.

“You can see the confidence in the young people here when you speak to them, the difference the devices are making to their learning.

“Before this people were getting out their phones in classes to look things up on Google which is not satisfactory.”

Fife will not be the first local authority with 1:1 digital deployment in its schools but it will be among a minority.

Digital shift needed ‘sooner rather than later’

It is learning from other areas where laptops or tablets are issued to all pupils including the Scottish Borders which has iPads.

Funding was anticipated from the Scottish Government following the 2021 SNP election pledge to give every pupil a digital device.

But Education Secretary Jenny Gilruth revealed in March the provision would be means-tested.

Mr Ross said that barring a significant further cut to its budget Fife Council is determined to deliver universal provision.

He expects some opposition to the investment.

But he said: “If we want to transform our learning and improve attainment which, unfortunately has plateaued a bit recently, then we need to make the shift to this digital approach for our young people sooner rather than later.

“We can’t wait for money to come in, we need to be doing it ourselves.

“Digital learning and teaching are now critical for our pupils and schools.”