On a Wednesday morning Class No. 1 of the third grade, which has been involved in an “e-bookbag” experiment, is studying Chinese. Twenty students have been divided into four groups. Each has chosen a text on which to perform structural analysis. First they discuss it as a group and then they split up to write their individual analyses, before finally going online to stitch the various pieces together into a single report.

“How to work together in the cloud is something we’re still trying to figure out,” says the teacher, Chen Ding­qin. At first students couldn’t accept that their classmates’ work would appear on their own computer screens. What’s more, some of them wrote in characters so large that others were left with little or no space to provide their own answer. It created a situation where students were constantly erasing what someone else had written so as to be able to write themselves. “The next time these materials are revised, they should add a grid, so that children can neatly place their characters in squares.”

For three years Zhongyi Elementary’s Chen Dingqin has been teaching in an experimental e-learning classroom that is paperless and completely digital.

Implementing “a computer for every student” and a “paperless classroom” is a special characteristic of Zhongyi’s “electronic bookbag” experiment.

Currently, in both third and sixth grade there is one class that has been designated an “e-bookbag experimental class.” The students in these classes carry only a 1.75-kilogram computer and no paper textbooks. They complete their work, turn it in and have it corrected entirely on tablet computers.

The third-grade class has been using the e-bookbag for only a little over two months. Chen Ding­qin, the class’s teacher, says that at first some paper was needed for worksheets and the like, but now students are very comfortable with operating the e-bookbag, and the parent contact books are the only paper materials left. The textbooks, worksheets and homework are now all handled completely electronically.

Zhou Zhiyu, a third grader who first used the e-bookbag only at the start of the school year, says she really enjoys it: “After I finish my work, I can send it directly to the teacher. It’s very convenient for making corrections.”

With the digitization of the classroom, the educational interaction is not all teacher-student. “I tell the students: When you have problems, you’ve got to first ask for help from your classmates. Only when they can’t solve a problem do you then ask your teacher for help.” Once students adapt, they become a collaborative learning community and start learning from each other.

“When all goes smoothly, teaching this way is really quite easy, and you never have to write on the blackboard. But once there’s a problem with the network, it’s a big hassle. When there’s not enough bandwidth, everything slows down and it makes working very difficult.”

Zhongyi Elementary has taken the lead in introducing a digital arts curriculum, providing students with a new way to create art: using a special stylus on a tablet computer.

Apart from 42 netbook computers for use as electronic bookbags that were purchased in 2009, in 2012 ­the school added 25 tablet computers, which are used for teaching art.

Art teacher Zhang Jun­hui first spent a month learning how to operate the art software. She points out that the software is capable of imitating water­colors, oil paints and other media. It spares her the hassle of having to prepare all kinds of materials and of having to clean up the inevitable mess. And it also allows her to integrate art with other curricula, such as by inserting these dynamic drawings into travel journals assigned for Chinese class.

The software allows users to choose from a wide range of media, but requires them to work separately on different digital layers. You’ve got to have both an aesthetic sense and control over your computer to succeed. “One student had excellent art skills with traditional media, but because he had little exposure to computers at home, he couldn’t switch over,” recalls Zhang. “He found it really difficult to use.”

Curriculum director John Chen points out that the stylus that comes with the tablet is one of its most important features. Using the stylus, students first create an outline on their tablet computer’s screen. They then select and apply media to put on top of it. As if by magic, watercolors or the “textured” brushstrokes of oil paintings suddenly appear on screen.

The students have demonstrated great excitement about creating art on the tablet computer. “The children have shown a lot more enthusiasm for learning,” Zhang Jun­hui says. When their class is in session, students from other classes circle around and watch.

Zhongyi’s digital classrooms have a raised floor, and the students take off their shoes and wear slippers in class. There are power outlets in the floor, and the desks have angled tops to make it easier to read tablet computers.

As for worries that the digital classroom will lead to nearsightedness, the school has prudently taken precautions.

“We have taught students how to dim their computer screens to make their eyes more comfortable,” emphasizes John Chen. Every term the school conducts eye tests, and the results have shown that there isn’t much difference in the vision of the students in the digital classrooms from those in the regular classrooms.

As for the academic results of the program, Chen points out that although the students’ progress has only been slightly higher than that of other students, creativity, critical thinking skills, and ability to collaborate with peers are skills that are hard to test and put a number on. Comparing their skills in these areas to those of students in traditional classrooms will require surveys or thematic presentations in order to judge.

Essay writing is an indicative activity. Chen says that writing is based on a foundation of ample reading. In traditional classrooms, with the focus put on the textbook, it is difficult for students to extend their learning. In this respect, digital classrooms are far superior, and students have improved tremendously as writers.

Zhongyi Elementary has already realized the dream of a paperless classroom. Teacher Chen Ding­qin is looking forward to a future platform that is even more comprehensive and ergonomic. “So long as the tools are easy to use,” he says, “the transition from traditional schooling to e-learning should be a seamless one.”