The rollout of laptops for students, a key part of Belgium’s ‘digisprong’ initiative, aimed to provide every pupil with their own device. However, the reality has been different, as laptops have rarely been fully free for students and parents. By 2025-05-02 15:00:00, it became clear that schools had considerable freedom in how they implemented this system.
- Introduce laptops through 'de digisprong' initiative
- Provide laptops mostly not free for families
- Allow schools to create own laptop systems
- Offer free, rental, or discounted laptops
- Require 70% of parents to pay
- Vary costs significantly among schools
Some schools managed to offer laptops completely free of charge, while many others used rental schemes or required parents to purchase laptops at discounted rates. But why has this digital leap not been uniformly accessible to all families? And what does this mean for equity in Belgian education?
Understanding these disparities is crucial as Belgium continues to push for digital inclusion in schools. Let’s explore what the costs and systems look like across the country.
Why do costs vary so much between schools? The freedom given to schools to choose their approach has led to uneven access. This raises important questions about fairness and effectiveness in digital education:
- Are rental systems a fair solution or an additional burden on families?
- Does the variation in laptop availability affect student performance?
- Could a standardized approach improve equality and reduce confusion?
As Belgium moves forward, policymakers and educators must consider how to ensure all students benefit equally from digital learning tools. Could a more unified strategy be the key to bridging the digital divide?
