The Digital School between Paradox and Counter-Paradox

Contemporary schools adopt various digital infrastructures, such as electronicgradebooks and communication platforms, which support teachers in carrying out their dailyactivities. Students, for intuitive reasons, are instead required to refrain from using mobilephones and tablets during lessons, although many continue to use them covertly. It is undeniable that excessive or improper use of technology can be ineffective and sometimes evenharmful; however, it is equally true that it is not possible to turn back time, nor is it easy tocurb the tendency of learners to use mobile devices pervasively. In light of paradigms such asthe Extended Mind and Distributed Cognition, several crucial questions therefore arise: towhat extent does it make sense to ask students to give up tools that mediate their cognitiveprocesses? When the use of devices cannot be effectively limited, what alternatives can beadopted? And how can these artefacts be used consciously to guide learning and foster thepersonal growth of learners? This contribution aims to address these questions through anextended learning perspective, capable of recognizing and enhancing the co-evolution of individuals, learning environments, and digital artefacts.