i2e Digital Futures - iPad Scheme

iPad Demo -Showbie

In this short video, we’re excited to give you a glimpse into how Miss Adams and the rest of our teaching team are using Showbie on the school iPads to support your child’s learning. From sharing lesson resources and giving instant feedback, to encouraging creativity and keeping pupils engaged, Showbie helps us make learning more interactive and accessible for every student.

Let’s take a look at how it all works in the classroom!

 

Proven Benefits of iPads in UK Schools

FAQ's

What is I2E Digital Futures?

We are introducing iPads for every student to enhance learning opportunities through technology. Each student will receive their own device to use throughout the school year.

Digital literacy is increasingly important for academic and future career success. iPads provide access to interactive learning resources, support personalised learning paths, and help students develop crucial technology skills.

Teachers will integrate iPads into lessons for interactive activities, research, digital textbooks, educational apps, collaborative projects, and assessments. They’ll complement rather than replace traditional learning methods.

Yes. iPads will enhance learning, not replace core skills. Teachers will maintain a balanced approach with appropriate time for handwriting, physical books, and non-digital activities. The iPads will come with a stylus for writing on the iPad screen so that students continue to develop handwriting skills.

We’re asking parents to contribute £7 per month toward the cost of the scheme. This helps sustain the program while keeping costs manageable for families. The school is subsidising the scheme and is not making any money from it. Children will receive:

  • 11-inch iPad (A16) Wi-Fi 128GB – Silver
  • Tucano Active Stylus Pencil 2 stylus
  • Tucano ALUNNO case
  • Apple 20W USB-C Power Adapter

The device is insured and the school has set up a payment portal to manage the administration of payments. The school has also had to purchase a range software including device management software, filtering and monitoring software as well as a range of educational apps.

Financial assistance options are available. Please speak confidentially with the school. We’re committed to ensuring all students have equal access regardless of financial circumstances.

Our iPads are on the latest operating system and have to be configured so that they compatible with and can use the school systems. This is not possible on personal devices. Our safeguarding software will only work on our school iPads.

The school loans the iPad to you while your child is at the school. The school retains ownership of the iPad. Parents will have a right to take ownership of the iPad at the end of their time with the school (a market value redemption will be issued at that time which will include any remaining payments under the lease).

The school has an insurance policy covering basic repairs. Please report any incidents immediately. Please do not attempt to repair the iPad yourself. If the iPad is lost or stolen, please inform us immediately. Our system allows us to lock and track the iPads. If the iPad is stolen, please report to the police and pass the crime number to the school – a replacement can then be arranged. If an iPad is being repaired, a temporary replacement device will be issued.

The school has an insurance policy covering basic repairs. Please report any incidents immediately. Please do not attempt to repair the iPad yourself. If the iPad is lost or stolen, please inform us immediately. Our system allows us to lock and track the iPads. If the iPad is stolen, please report to the police and pass the crime number to the school – a replacement can then be arranged. If an iPad is being repaired, a temporary replacement device will be issued.

All devices will have content filtering and monitoring software installed. Students will sign an acceptable use policy, and teachers will actively supervise iPad use during school hours.

Yes. Students will be responsible for bringing fully-charged devices to school each day along with their stylus (which has an approximate battery life of 15 hours)

School iPads will have restrictions limiting non-educational apps and websites. Teachers will receive training on classroom management strategies for technology use. The Apple Classroom app allows teachers to monitor use of the iPad by every student during the lesson.

Our staff will participate in comprehensive professional development to effectively integrate technology into their curriculum and manage digital classrooms. This training has already been ongoing since September 2024.

All apps and services will comply with student privacy laws. We’ve selected educational platforms with strong privacy protections, and personal information will be protected according to our privacy policy.

Our homework policy has not changed. The iPad will provide opportunities in the future for parents and carers to further support their child with their learning. There are no plans for compulsory homework to be set on the iPads.

We’ll host parent workshops throughout the year on topics like digital citizenship, online safety, and supporting learning with technology at home.

experience.

We believe that there is a big difference between passive screen time (where children ‘consume’ content such as watching films or gaming) and active screen time where children are creating, interacting and learning. Active screen time provides cognitive benefits. Studies have shown that children respond to activity-based tasks when they are fun, designed for them and encourage imitation or participation. These can include learning a new skill like coding games or websites, creating music, writing and publishing stories or poetry, or simply anything else that requires them to use the creative side of their brains. Any activity that encourages children to think is good for their cognitive development and the iPad provides a wide range of opportunities for this. Recent large-scale studies by Oxford and Cambridge University have shown that there are no negative impacts of increased screen time (this study included increases in passive screen time). Negative impact can come from what children have access to on their screens. Our iPads will be filtered and monitored to prevent children from accessing any damaging material.

There is a growing amount of research about the positive impact of iPads on children’s learning. The large majority of recent studies have found that there are a wide range of positive impacts of technology on learning. Where the studies fail to find a positive impact it is often due to the implementation of the devices in a classroom (i.e. poor integration with teaching and curriculum) or because of poor staff training. We have already begun a strategic approach to ensuring high quality staff training and well-planned integration in to the classroom to avoid potential drawbacks.

Some examples include:

  • children’s mathematics achievement was greater with tablets in comparison to traditional, non-touchscreen methods such as workbooks. (A systematic review in 2022)
  • better learning outcomes were detected when children used touchscreens compared to non-touchscreen usage (meta-analysis of 2018)
  • for children using a stylus, their performance did not significantly differ neither from a keyboard nor from a pencil groups.

There are a number of key areas that can be greatly improved with the use of the iPad. All of these areas have huge amounts of educational research to support their impact in the classroom:

  • Retrieval / spaced practice
  • Adaptive teaching / practice
  • Teacher modelling and explanation
  • Formative assessment
  • Feedback
  • Creativity

“Success will be determined by the quality of the pedagogy and the way in which it is implemented” (Educational Endowment Foundation)

Years of declining school budgets from central government have put us in the position where it just simply isn’t an option. 95% of school leaders (source: Dept for Education, 2023) say that budgetary constraints are the biggest barrier to increased uptake of technology by schools. We don’t want this to be the reason why year after year, we continue to deny your children the benefits that technology can bring.

  • Accidental damage is covered by the insurance (with a charge to parent/carer of £50 excess for any claim towards repair or replacement)
  • Deliberate damage is not covered by the insurance.
  • A lost iPad is also not covered by the insurance.
  • Any malfunction of the device will be covered by the warranty and there will be no excess charge for repair or replacement.
  • If the iPad is stolen, a crime number must be obtained and the iPad will be replaced. There is no excess charge for this.

We have visited a range of other schools that have successfully integrated iPads into their teaching and have seen the positive impact of them. Alternative tablets do not offer the range of features, functions, security, robustness and durability that the iPad offers. Laptops similarly, do not offer the versatility and usability that the iPad does.

If the large majority of parents don’t take part in the scheme, we will not be able to go ahead with the scheme. The school’s current iPads are due to move to another school in the Trust in September and our school will have to revert to the methods of teaching and learning it was using prior to this year.

 

If the scheme runs but you do not take part. Your child will still have access to a shared device during the lessons where a device is deemed essential by the teacher but it will not be personalised for your child and they will not be able to take it home.

The iPads are acquired on a four year lease. We can therefore guarantee that the price will stay the same for at least four years. However, we have no influence on the retail price of technology which may go up or down over time. We have through extensive research, acquired the devices at the cheapest price we could and passed that saving on to the scheme. In the future, if the school is able to offer further subsidy to the scheme and pass on other cost savings, then we will.

There is no set rule on which lessons and for how long the iPads will be used. Our approach is simple – where the iPad can improve the learning and enhance the teaching, it should be used. For example, we anticipate that the bulk of maths practice will be done on the iPad because of the instant feedback, support and personalisation it offers. There will be no reduction in the amount of time pupils spend being more active in lessons during the school day.

Far from it. Our teachers have embraced the iPads and how they have transformed their lessons this year. As with anything new, there has been a steep learning curve but teachers have engaged really well with the opportunities afforded by the iPads. The most frequent comment from our staff this year has been ‘I wish I had access to the iPads every day’.

 

Teachers have attended hours of training and the school has committed to continuing this training next year and beyond. All teachers have gained the Apple Teacher qualification and some have begun training for the Apple Coach qualification.

We have a self-service app where pupils can download school-approved apps for use outside of school.