One Laptop Per Child Outline

K.Karr - One Laptop Per Child Outline

Introduction- Is the One Laptop Per Child a viable program for supporting a constructivist theory of learning?

• The thinking behind the program, and the proliferation of technology.
• Personal practice- not as intuitive as purported.
• Despite theories of constructivist learning, research does not support that the laptops were the best choice.
• The future of the program- tablets, and American schools. The money may be spent better elsewhere. (Tucker article)

The Mission of OLPC

• Origins- Nicholas Negroponte’s vision, and the official statements of the project, (OLPC website and Kane book)
• Implementation - The original proliferation of materials was viewed with optimism. (Callister Article) (Warschauer 2010)

The Hardware

• Specs, programs (OLPC materials). Beneficial because of the programmability, and the tenacity of the material.
• Personal testing - Review of my experiences. Perhaps it takes a child to understand, but the best way to use these machines would be with the advent of adult instruction.

The Results

• The early studies did not have positive results.
• Kramer article - THE study on the results. Reality and vision did not sync up as hoped.
• The Fuse Project- the OLPC essentially discontinued?

The Future

• Popular Science article- Has OLPC Lost its Way?
• Moving on to tablets via the Fuse Project. Does technology change too fast for the program? Or does it mean cheaper machines faster?  (Warschauer 2014)
• Negroponte interview reveals he doesn't think its a failure, he keeps looking forward to MOOCS, etc. (Tucker 2014)
• Overall, an admirable goal, but amount of “money per student” could be spent on healthcare, education for less than the cost of the technologies. (Warschauer 2010)