OLPC Project Disappoints In Peru

00_NOP writes "The One Laptop Per Child project has disappointed in Peru, reports the Economist, apparently because in general teachers did not make creative use of the technology. As in other cases the computers seem to have been regarded as ends in themselves rather than tools to help change the ways kids are taught. Quite disappointing for those of us looking for Linux-Global-Domination but not really much of a surprise given the experience in richer countries either."

Comments

Independent learning

[Nithron]

This kid seems to have gotten the right idea. Maybe even if the teachers aren't using them properly, giving naturally curious kids access to a whole world of information will help them out anyway.

Or maybe that guy was just a unique case, I don't know. That video made me feel all warm and fuzzy inside however.

(If you can't be bothered to watch the video, shame on you! But also, it's about a child in Peru who works cleaning people's shoes on the streets. He has an OLPC laptop, though, and he uses it to educate himself with wikipedia.)

Re:Independent learning

[Electricity Likes Me]

I feel this is really the type of thing OLPC is aiming for.

Probably more importantly though, I suspect OLPC was always going to disappoint - after all, it's goal wasn't an integrated software and hardware package that would do everything right (although they have put a decent amount of thought into the software) - the goal was to get the price of the laptops to a point where we could conceivably offer them to every child on the planet.

It's things like the Kahn Academy which are ultimately going to drive the very important software aspect of this - and in that respect OLPC is good since it will be able to define the minimum hardware standard we should aim for.