Beyond OLPC

In less than nine months I went from knowing little to nothing about OLPC to hearing about it almost on a daily basis and wanting to be a part of it. In fact, I somehow managed to take part of the project by interning for TechBridgeWorld this summer. By being a technical lead for one of the iSTEP 2011 projects, I had to opportunity to explore different aspects of how OLPC had an impact in Uruguay and the problems it was facing.

By reading “The Prophet of Cheap” article and several other articles debating whether the importance of the OLPC initiative came from creating cheap laptops or pressuring the market into doing so, I had a different appreciation for the topic. Nicholas Negroponte clearly states that: “There’s an interesting point in history for us. All we have to do is threaten to build the tablet and that may be enough”[1]. I can say that we have seen the effect of the pressure created in the last couple of years where major firms such as Intel have been competing to come up with cheap netbooks and tablets. However, I think that the real problem with OLPC is the fate of the XO laptops once they reach their destination: students living in developing communities lucky enough to have their government adhere to the OLPC initiative. Sustainability is a big issue in the case of OLPC. Who is responsible for making sure that the laptops distributed to students are used, at least in part, for educational purposes? Who is responsible for maintaining them and making sure they are working properly? These are the real questions I think we, along with the rest of the OLPC fanatic community, should be asking ourselves.

XO laptops were designed to be educational tools that would give students access to information and to a vast global community. Taking this into consideration, it only makes sense that the laptops are integrated into the teaching curricula of the communities using them. In the case of Uruguay, XO laptops are intensely used by students to have access to Facebook. The social media guru appears to be on top of the sites frequented by students. Not to deny the power of social media, I think that the XO laptops would be more beneficial if used as support tools in classrooms. OLPC did a great job explaining that its true value stems from providing not only "computers" but an "education" that eventually "creates food, creates water and creates medicine". This goal would be achieved better by using the computers as educational tools that could support and enhance the educational experience of students living in developing communities. The goal is not to make it optional, but a primordial part of the educational trek. I think OLPC could take a more active role in making sure the computers are being used to achieve education. They could provide a support mechanism for governments and institutions using their XO laptops and guiding them to incorporate them into their curricula. The initiative is great, but I think that it has to go beyond making deals, distributing laptops and having a great open source community develop activities for them. It could be an ongoing journey of collaboration and learning between OLPC and its beneficiaries and "clients”.

Talking about sustainability is also crucial when dealing with computers, students usually under the age of 16 and developing communities. Making sure the equipment is working properly and does not go obsolete is key. One of the goals of OLPC was to build the capacity in the local communities and let them take over the sustainability part. However, should there be a complete disconnection between the two entities over the long run? Should the "if it ain't broken, don't fix it" expression be applied in this case? Shouldn't there be some kind of follow up to make sure that the technology is not only working properly but being used properly? Food for thoughts...

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [1] http://www.zdnet.com/blog/btl/olpcs-negroponte-a-new-constructionist-medium-needed-for-tablets/39861?tag=search-results-rivers;item2