ELIZABETHTOWN, N.C. – Bladen County High School students are rolling-out a new digital era for the school district. The students are piloting a new tablet digital device project thanks to a grant from Golden LEAF Foundation.

This new project will encourage students to go online for speed learning and conducing research. Now the students can take home the tablet and have 24-hour access to the Internet.

"I'm ready to try it out, I am excited!" said sophomore Alysa Anderson. " I feel real lucky to be able to take it home and then not take it back at the end of the day."

Teachers said they foresee learning improving from this innovative tool and soon they won't need to buy textbooks.

“It's a whole thing that is developing into a new era and something that they are excited about and just having the technology where we have been so limited before. You know every kid now has that tablet in there hand," said science teacher Stephanie Hester.

Students said these tablets are going to change the way they learn and save time. They can send their homework in as soon as it's done to their teacher or write them an email if they have any questions from home.

And instant access to information is helping to change the whole scope of education.

"It closes the digital gap. When you think about a county, a rural county like Bladen, where 74 percent [of students receive] free and reduced lunch, a lot of those kids don't have those resources at home but how important is the Internet in today's world, particular when we are talking about learning,” said Superintendent Dr. Robert Taylor.

Beginning in August 2012, all Bladen High School students will receive the Thinkpad tablet.