Schools of the future

Estonia against the tide: smartphones in the classroom and AI-based lessons

In contrast to the rest of Europe, Tallinn encourages the use of devices in the classroom and gives AI accounts. Estonians top for maths, science and creativity

by Enrico Marro

28 May 2025

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Al contrario del resto d’Europa, l’Estonia incoraggia l’uso dei device in classe e regala account di intelligenza artificiale.

2' min read

Key points

Free AI account for all
Tech pioneers at school since 1997
Estonian top in maths, science and creativity

2' min read

When you say reasoning contrarian riding the tiger.

While Europe (from France to Denmark via Italy) rushes to ban smartphones at school, Estonia openly asks schoolchildren to use them in class as a learning tool.

Attention: we are talking about teaching purposes, not taking selfies in the toilets during recess or shooting video games secretly under the desk. The devices are used at the request of the teacher as part of the curriculum, with great independence of individual institutions in regulating their use.

But there is more.The small Baltic country former Soviet republic (1.4 million inhabitants), pioneer of the e-residency and lover of every early technological adoption, from September will give every student an AI account.

Free AI account to all

Licences are being negotiated with OpenAI, which will grant free access to high-level artificial intelligence tools to 58,000 students and five thousand teachers by 2027.

It will start in September with sixteen and seventeen year olds.The teachers will be trained in the most advanced technologies, with specific focus on autonomous learning and digital ethics.

Voting at 16 with a smartphone

This is surprising up to a point, in a country where you vote for general elections at the age of sixteen with your smartphone.

As the Estonian Minister of Education, Kristina Kallas, well sums it up, "we want 16-year-olds to use mobile phones to do their civic duty, to take part in elections, to get information, to analyse political programmes. It would be a bit strange if we did not allow them to use them in school, in an educational context. It would send a very confusing message to 16-year-olds: vote online, vote from a mobile phone, but don't use ChatGpt on your phone to learn'.

Tech pioneers at school since 1997

Unlike Italy, Estonia loves change. It embraces new technologies with enthusiasm.

As far back as 1997 with the programme 'leap of the tiger' (Tiigrihüpe) he connected all schools to the Internet, investing heavily in computers and network infrastructure. He had realised the potential of the world wide web even in the classroom.

Now there is artificial intelligence, the new runaway train to jump on first.

According to Kallas AI is an unprecedented revolution: it will bring an end to the centuries-old 'memorise repeat apply' model of learning, the minister explained to the incredulous audience at the Education World Forum in London.

The challenge today is to develop superior cognitive skills in young people, because artificial intelligence can do the rest better and faster.

Estonian tops in maths, science and creativity

But are the Estonians right to think contrarian about smartphones and AI in school, just as they did with the Internet?

Let the results speak for themselves: the small Baltic republic came first in the Pisa OECD tests for mathematics, science and creative thinking, and second only to Ireland for reading.

It is likely that, once again, riding the tech tiger will do Estonia good.