Personal learning devices in schools BOON OR BANE?

They are meant to enhance learning, but some parents say devices distract students

- Elisha Tushara

Eighteen seconds spent on Google Classroom and more than three hours on entertainment apps like YouTube and TikTok. This was what parents discovered about how their 13-year-old son had been using the school-issued iPad during school hours.

The Secondary 1 student, from Gan Eng Seng School, admitted to his parents that more often than not, he had not been paying attention during lessons as he had been playing online games on his iPad under the table in the classroom.

All secondary school students have received such school-sanctioned tablets or personal laptops since 2021, after the Ministry of Education (MOE) brought forward its original 2028 target by seven years. Online learning became more prevalent during the Covid-19 pandemic, and schools have begun to introduce regular home-based learning.

Schools select from a range of device types - mostly iPads or Chromebooks - and the intent is for all students in the school to be using the same device, for lessons and assignments on online platform Singapore Student Learning Space (SLS), both at home and in classrooms.

But not everyone is in favour of having access to screens in school. At least eight parents told The Sunday Times that they feel the personal learning devices (PLDs) have caused more distraction in the classroom instead of enhancing learning, and several teachers said they often catch students checking messages or playing games.

Some parents from Gan Eng Seng School said their children have been constantly distracted by their PLDs during lessons since receiving them in April.

The parents said their children would typically spend three to four hours on non-educational activities on their iPads each day in school, based on screen time checks.