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Chapter 11 - Early OLPC Experiences in a Rural Uruguayan School
Book chapter

Chapter 11 - Early OLPC Experiences in a Rural Uruguayan School

Juan Pablo Hourcade, Daiana Beitler, Fernando Cormenzana and Pablo Flores
Mobile Technology for Children, pp.225-243
Elsevier Inc
2009
DOI: 10.1016/B978-0-12-374900-0.00011-9

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Abstract

The One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) Foundation has championed the idea of providing children in developing regions with low-cost laptops to address this issue. This chapter discusses the results from a pilot experience with OLPC Foundation's prototype XO laptops in a small rural town in Uruguay from an independent point of view. The OLPC Foundation's design of the XO laptops takes into account the goals of providing children with 21st-century skills, together with children's specific requirements, the limitations of using the hardware in challenging situations (in terms of weather, access to electricity, and so on), and the constraints in cost necessary to make the project viable for developing regions. The design of the XO laptops provides two aspects that are critical for the development of 21st-century skills: mobility and connectivity. The discussion in the chapter is based on visits to the school, where activities with children and interviews with teachers and staff were conducted. It was found that in spite of infrastructure, hardware, and software problems, the experience so far appears to have had a positive effect on the children, the school, and the town. The roles of mobility and connectivity in the successful use of laptops were emphasized in the study.

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