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Education·G Space·Evidence-backed gain·Published 2026-07-12

Estonia eschews phone bans in schools and takes leap into AI

Abstract: While many schools in England have banned smartphones, in Estonia – regarded as the new European education powerhouse – students are regularly asked to use their devices in class, and from September they will be given their own AI accounts. The small Baltic country – population 1.4 million – has quietly become Europe’s top performer in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development’s programme for international student assessment (Pisa), overtaking its near neighbour Finland. In the most recent Pisa…

TRV-2026-0100JournalismPermanent record — cite & verify
Estonia eschews phone bans in schools and takes leap into AI
The quick read

Estonia is launching a national initiative called AI Leap that will ask students to use personal devices in class and provide them with their own AI accounts from September, with licences being negotiated with OpenAI.

The move matters because it positions a top Pisa-performing system as a national testbed for classroom AI, but the supplied text does not yet show how tools will be used, what learning gains will be measured, or how risks will be managed.

Main points
  • Estonia has a population of 1.4 million and was formerly part of the Soviet Union.
  • Estonia was Europe's top performer in the OECD Pisa 2022 assessments for maths, science and creative thinking.
  • The AI Leap initiative is negotiating licences with OpenAI and will make Estonia a testbed for AI in schools.
Gain

Estonian students and teachers will receive personal AI accounts and licences through the national AI Leap program to develop practical AI skills in school.

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