OLPC past and present

ONE LAPTOP PER CHILD

Northeast GNU/Linux Fest 2013Sam Klein sj@laptop.org

Experimental Backchannel

http:// piratepad.net/OLPC

Foreshadowing

History and Development Designing for Learning Deployments Results so far What's Next:

Tablets & OLPC Academy

HISTORY AND DEVELOPMENT

Over 2 million children and teachers in 42 countries use XO in education

Education

Community

Society

Every child deserves the chance to learn.

Children learn best when they are active -- exploring, collaborating, & expressing themselves.

Laptops can enable this active style of learning and transform education.

The Vision

MIT Media Lab

• A team of educators and engineers

• Convergence of technology, pedagogy, education policy

• Focus on solutions for the hardest environments

2005: Announcement of 'One Laptop per Child’initiative with UN Secretary General Kofi Annan

From Theory to Reality

HOW: • Minimal Marketing, Distribution• Large Purchases• Linux only• Reduce display cost

Gross Breakdown in Laptop Costs, 2006

Display Sales Marketing

Distribution Windows Support

OLPC Proposal$100 Laptop Cost 2005

Display

x

Getting to the Lowest Price

2006: Founding Members

MOMA- NYC

DESIGNING FOR LEARNING

Objectives:

Support creativity and project-based learning;

Teach children to explore and hack their own tools

OLPC's Five Principles

Sugar Educational Software

Math

Art

Music

Language skills

Programming

+300 Activities

Sugar Network

Educational Origins

Jean Piaget Seymour Papert

Learning by Doing

Robotics via the XO laptop:Butiabot, LEGO WeDo

• Creativity

• Curiosity

• Communication skills

• Critical thinking & problem solving

XOs can be solar-powered where there is no reliable source of electricity

The transflective screen is crisp in bright sunlight, can run without a backlight

Usable anywhere

OLPC DEPLOYMENTS

2.5 million XOs worldwide2.5 million XOs worldwide

Uruguay

•The first country with one laptop per child and wifi in every school and home.600,000 children and teachers (grades 1-10)

•A social transformation project: more enrollment, less violence.

Uruguay: National pride

Perú

• 900,000 XOs in primary and secondary schools

• Challenging deployment due to geography and cultural diversity

• Small remote communities with limited electricity

Perú: Commitment

Argentina

•60,000 XOs in La Rioja

•Project developed by the provincial government

•Complete saturation

•Effort to bring Internet to the whole province

Paraguay

•9,000 children across Paraguay

•Supported by a dedicated national NGO, ParaguayEduca

•SWIFT donated 3,500+ Xos to children in Caacupe

•Agreements with hydroelectric providers to improve regional electricity

Nicaragua

• 30,000 XOs distributed by the Zamora-Terán Foundation • Support from public and private companies• Support from other countries (Denmark)

Rwanda

120,000 children so far, part of Rwanda 2020 vision for universal computer access

•An OLPC Regional Learning Center since 2009

•'Feeding mind and body' – partnership with World Food Program to distribute food and laptops

Nigeria

• 8,000 XOs deployed by Schlumberger Seed Program • First deployment in Africa (2007)• First patent troll lawsuit (2008) • Ongoing support from private partners• Currently expanding with support of local municipalities

Canada

• Alliance with the Belinda Stronach Foundation

• 5,000 students and teachers across 12 First Nation communities

Source: One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) Canada: Backgrounder programs

US: Miami, Charlotte

• Alliance with the Knight Foundation and TFA to reach 500 children in Liberty City, Miami.

• A similar partnership this year helping 2000 children in Charlotte, NC

Deployment strategies

Develop Community Awareness • Educate population on program benefits and XO functionality• Develop social inclusion campaigns to achieve local support• Launch training programs to promote XO usage, including teachers

Government ownership• Exploratory mission to gauge interest of host government and key stakeholders• Based on the above, work with government and key stakeholders to develop a deployment strategy

along the following lines

A

B

Customize XO platform to address local needs • Meet with officials from the minister of education to align on curriculum requirements• Develop customized applications• Digitize textbooks, perform translations

C

Deployment strategies II

Develop infrastructure • Provide advisory/ support for government in development of infrastructure

(Electrical, IT, network management)• Local capacity building (inventory management, logistics, distribution, maintenance, financial tracking) • Development of Internet access and connectivity infrastructure

Train the core team • Government to select 'Core Team' for execution of local program (IT expertise, etc)• Train core team in all learning and technical elements of the product and program• Train a set of local trainers who will be sent throughout the country

D

E

Monitoring & Evaluation • Initial field assessment baseline study• Monitor initial program roll out; evaluate social, academic impacts annually

F

Project Components

Child and FamilyChild and Family

ParticipationParticipation

Human DignityHuman Dignity

Poverty EradicationPoverty Eradication

Individual EmpowermentIndividual Empowerment

Social InclusionSocial Inclusion

Entrepreneurship

Digital Inclusion

OLPC

Education

IMPACT & RESULTS

Supporting UN Millenium Development Goals

• Development beyond economic growth: combating social exclusion.

• One Laptop at a timeOne Laptop per Child

• Enabling equal access to education.• XO programs in Nepal and Pakistan

• Solar power rechargeable• Digital Library: access to 1.6 M books• Knowledge transferred

• OLPC is a Public Private Partnership program worldwide

OLPC Public Partners

OLPC Private Partners

• Direct donations• Software development• Hardware production• Promotional campaigns• Public-private partnerships• Matching donations with

local Governments• Content distribution• Strategic Initiatives• Internship programs

Students exposed to collaborative learningUruguay

Interactive collaborative learning and critical thinking proven to increase a child's intelligence, aptitude

Dramatic reduction in the digital divideUruguay

Children 6 to 11 years with computer access at home, income quintiles. Trends 2008-2009 (%) homes.

Jan - Mar Apr - Jun Jul - Sep Oct - Dec Jan - Mar Apr - Jun Jul - Sep Oct - Dec

2008

2009Quintile 1 Quintile 2 Quintile 3 Quintile 4 Quintile 5

Source: Assessment Area Ceibal, DSPE – ANEP / Based on microdata from the Continuous Household Survey 2008 and 2009, the National Statistics Institute (INE).

Cross-generational social skillsUruguay

87% YES – 13% NO 63% YES – 37% NO

Source: Monitoring and Evaluation Area. Plan Ceibal Families National Survey-2009

Improvements in registration and completionNicaragua, 2-year program

Source: Results of impact OLPC project in Nicaragua, evaluation Zamora Teran Foundation 2010

• School registration rate

• Drop-out rate

• Repetition rate

Improved Math and Language scoresNicaragua

How can we ensure that one billion children receive quality education in the next decade?

WHAT'S NEXT?

Literacy: NELL and narrative interfaces

XO learning tablets

Make Your Own Sugar Activities (James Simmons, 2013)

• activities.sugarlabs.org

• lists.sugarlabs.org/listinfo/iaeplists.sugarlabs.org/listinfo/sugar-devel

OLPC Academy: apply by March 31 bit.ly/olpc-academy

academy@laptop.org

Thank you! SJ@laptop.org