This looks like a typical situation that comes up when we want to use off-the-shelf tablets or smartphones as dedicated devices. You can achieve this objective by locking down the devices with SureLock, so that the users can only access and run specifically allowed applications and features of the device. In your case, it could be just the news, games, and other education materials.
And if you want to remotely manage these devices like remotely changing allowed applications or even remotely adjusting the brightness, you can always use Mobile Device Management solutions.
Hope it helps!