tag:www.olpcnews.com,2008-12-05://4 2009-07-04T10:25:56Z Your independent news, information, commentary, and discussion of One Laptop Per Child and the XO laptop. Movable Type Pro 4.24-en http://www.olpcnews.com/countries/brazil/uca_brazil_auction_canceled.html#comment-270233 2009-07-04T10:25:56Z 2009-07-04T10:25:56Z

Hope this "OLPC" program would run successfully that's what i pray for it........ http://www.electrocomputerwarehouse.com

Cheap Computers <p>Hope this "OLPC" program would run successfully that's what i pray for it........<br /> <a href="http://www.electrocomputerwarehouse.com">http://www.electrocomputerwarehouse.com</a></p> <img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/OLPCNewsRecentComments/~4/K_SxYUSBtZ8" height="1" width="1"/> http://www.olpcnews.com/countries/brazil/uca_brazil_auction_canceled.html#comment-270233 http://www.olpcnews.com/countries/ethiopia/olpc_ethiopia_history_observations.html#comment-270231 2009-07-02T23:18:59Z 2009-07-02T23:18:59Z

Great news. I am happy that a good evalution study is being done, and even more happy that it is finding such good outcomes.

eduardo montez <p>Great news. I am happy that a good evalution study is being done, and even more happy that it is finding such good outcomes. </p> <img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/OLPCNewsRecentComments/~4/kHEZR0eshro" height="1" width="1"/> http://www.olpcnews.com/countries/ethiopia/olpc_ethiopia_history_observations.html#comment-270231 http://www.olpcnews.com/use_cases/community/empower_kids_get_a_free_laptop.html#comment-270230 2009-07-02T20:36:35Z 2009-07-02T20:36:35Z

Margaret, OLPC is wonderful but the problem is I want to buy for some for us to take to children in other countries and they refuse to sell them. You are helping women in Africa and I can help with their farming.

Ken Hargesheimer <p>Margaret,</p> <p>OLPC is wonderful but the problem is I want to buy for some for us to take to children in other countries and they refuse to sell them.</p> <p>You are helping women in Africa and I can help with their farming.</p> <img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/OLPCNewsRecentComments/~4/2ndIuSskszM" height="1" width="1"/> http://www.olpcnews.com/use_cases/community/empower_kids_get_a_free_laptop.html#comment-270230 http://www.olpcnews.com/countries/ethiopia/olpc_ethiopia_history_observations.html#comment-270229 2009-07-02T20:03:41Z 2009-07-02T20:03:41Z

thanks for asking, the best way is to get in direct contact with the University of Groningen which is publishing the report. They are also the best to describe the research methods.

Thomas <p>thanks for asking, the best way is to get in direct contact with the University of Groningen which is publishing the report. They are also the best to describe the research methods.</p> <img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/OLPCNewsRecentComments/~4/TnFqygXUDes" height="1" width="1"/> http://www.olpcnews.com/countries/ethiopia/olpc_ethiopia_history_observations.html#comment-270229 http://www.olpcnews.com/countries/ethiopia/olpc_ethiopia_history_observations.html#comment-270227 2009-07-01T18:56:58Z 2009-07-01T18:56:58Z

Thomas, thanks for this information. It looks as though the researchers at Groningen are succeeding in creating a responsible and well-designed study. In the presentation that you link to, they only list the following results: Summary of first changes Laptop usage: › Children mainly use their laptop at home. › A learning device! Favorite acticity is writing. › They share it, often with parents First social tranformation: › Some changes in cultural values › The laptop increases the motivation to go to school in the countryside. Are there other publications that include the more robust results that you cite? (e.g.,

Ed Gaible <p>Thomas, thanks for this information. It looks as though the researchers at Groningen are succeeding in creating a responsible and well-designed study. In the presentation that you link to, they only list the following results: </p> <p>Summary of first changes<br /> Laptop usage:<br /> › Children mainly use their laptop at home.<br /> › A learning device! Favorite acticity is writing.<br /> › They share it, often with parents<br /> First social tranformation:<br /> › Some changes in cultural values<br /> › The laptop increases the motivation to go to school in<br /> the countryside.</p> <p>Are there other publications that include the more robust results that you cite? (e.g., 3 to 4% increased academic performance). Any additional information about the research methods or results will be appreciated.</p> <img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/OLPCNewsRecentComments/~4/-x6M--SU9ag" height="1" width="1"/> http://www.olpcnews.com/countries/ethiopia/olpc_ethiopia_history_observations.html#comment-270227 http://www.olpcnews.com/countries/india/atanu_dey_olpc_is_inappropriat.html#comment-270221 2009-07-01T03:45:21Z 2009-07-01T03:45:21Z

If politicians in India were educated (and most weren't morons) this statement "Public spending in (on?) education is in the low single-digit percentages." wouldn't be true. I do agree with the author though, money could be used better on essentials as opposed to the OLPC which is, relatively, quite expensive when you crunch the numbers. Consider this - most state education boards disallow the use of scientific calculators (and just use log tables and data sheets) because a lot of students cannot afford one.

Abe <p>If politicians in India were educated (and most weren't morons) this statement "Public spending in (on?) education is in the low single-digit percentages." wouldn't be true. </p> <p>I do agree with the author though, money could be used better on essentials as opposed to the OLPC which is, relatively, quite expensive when you crunch the numbers. Consider this - most state education boards disallow the use of scientific calculators (and just use log tables and data sheets) because a lot of students cannot afford one. <br /> </p> <img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/OLPCNewsRecentComments/~4/8LRBMM6x5NQ" height="1" width="1"/> http://www.olpcnews.com/countries/india/atanu_dey_olpc_is_inappropriat.html#comment-270221 http://www.olpcnews.com/countries/afghanistan/olpc_afghanistan_impact_resear.html#comment-270220 2009-06-30T17:42:39Z 2009-06-30T17:42:39Z

It's super that you're undertaking this impact evaluation. (And I agree with other commenters, it's great that you're looking at a broad range of indicators.) With regard to research partners and your objective of "strengthen[ing] the case for more widespread deployment": Obviously, the case will be stronger if you have an independent evaluation. It might be hard for you to detect areas where your positive bias for the program influences evaluation decisions. An independent evaluation will have way more credibility. That said, if you're getting moving in a hurry with your collection of baseline data, you can probably find people

Ed Gaible <p>It's super that you're undertaking this impact evaluation. (And I agree with other commenters, it's great that you're looking at a broad range of indicators.)</p> <p>With regard to research partners and your objective of "strengthen[ing] the case for more widespread deployment": Obviously, the case will be stronger if you have an independent evaluation. It might be hard for you to detect areas where your positive bias for the program influences evaluation decisions. An independent evaluation will have way more credibility. </p> <p>That said, if you're getting moving in a hurry with your collection of baseline data, you can probably find people on this blog or elsewhere who can review your eval plan and English-language versions of your survey instruments. </p> <img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/OLPCNewsRecentComments/~4/eX9M4JY3sYs" height="1" width="1"/> http://www.olpcnews.com/countries/afghanistan/olpc_afghanistan_impact_resear.html#comment-270220 http://www.olpcnews.com/countries/afghanistan/olpc_afghanistan_impact_resear.html#comment-270219 2009-06-30T10:55:32Z 2009-06-30T10:55:32Z

We would be interested in any research partners that would be willing to come on board - for whatever research they would be interested in performing... We are very researcher friendly (we already had 2 people through their internship here write their thesis on Afghan related topics)... Contact details can be found in the research plans themselves for anyone interested...

OLPC Afghanistan <p>We would be interested in any research partners that would be willing to come on board - for whatever research they would be interested in performing...</p> <p>We are very researcher friendly (we already had 2 people through their internship here write their thesis on Afghan related topics)...</p> <p>Contact details can be found in the research plans themselves for anyone interested...</p> <img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/OLPCNewsRecentComments/~4/TQ4lT-hySHg" height="1" width="1"/> http://www.olpcnews.com/countries/afghanistan/olpc_afghanistan_impact_resear.html#comment-270219 http://www.olpcnews.com/countries/uruguay/making_uruguays_300000_xo_lapt.html#comment-270215 2009-06-27T21:31:37Z 2009-06-27T21:31:37Z

Hola, muchachos. ¡Ay, que bueno! I have been waiting to see Edublog or something like it for years. I will be particularly happy when we can see the students blogging. We need to duplicate this in every country doing one-to-one computing, so that children can tell the rest of the world what is going on, and thus find out from the rest of the world what is going on. Next should be to design methods for student collaborations between schools and between countries. The possibilities beggar description.

Edward Cherlin <p>Hola, muchachos. ¡Ay, que bueno!</p> <p>I have been waiting to see Edublog or something like it for years. I will be particularly happy when we can see the students blogging. We need to duplicate this in every country doing one-to-one computing, so that children can tell the rest of the world what is going on, and thus find out from the rest of the world what is going on.</p> <p>Next should be to design methods for student collaborations between schools and between countries. The possibilities beggar description.</p> <img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/OLPCNewsRecentComments/~4/YnxEKG0MOqo" height="1" width="1"/> http://www.olpcnews.com/countries/uruguay/making_uruguays_300000_xo_lapt.html#comment-270215 http://www.olpcnews.com/software/operating_system/ubuntu_810_intrepid_optimized.html#comment-270214 2009-06-27T10:00:06Z 2009-06-27T10:00:06Z

hello i found much good information and useful advice following these threads. i hope to learn by re-booting my OLPc that crashed last summer and adding Ubuntu. any new[june 27 09] info would be great as i'm still learning as i go. Paz

mike breen <p>hello i found much good information and useful advice following these threads. i hope to learn by re-booting my OLPc that crashed last summer and adding Ubuntu. any new[june 27 09] info would be great as i'm still learning as i go. Paz </p> <img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/OLPCNewsRecentComments/~4/zAZZxbI_fe8" height="1" width="1"/> http://www.olpcnews.com/software/operating_system/ubuntu_810_intrepid_optimized.html#comment-270214 http://www.olpcnews.com/countries/afghanistan/olpc_afghanistan_impact_resear.html#comment-270213 2009-06-26T20:08:33Z 2009-06-26T20:08:33Z

Would you like to have other research partners? Walter Bender and I have been in contact with MIT, Harvard, Yale, Stanford, Columbia, and other universities and education schools to talk about research programs.

Edward Cherlin <p>Would you like to have other research partners? Walter Bender and I have been in contact with MIT, Harvard, Yale, Stanford, Columbia, and other universities and education schools to talk about research programs.</p> <img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/OLPCNewsRecentComments/~4/osbAHPGEU6g" height="1" width="1"/> http://www.olpcnews.com/countries/afghanistan/olpc_afghanistan_impact_resear.html#comment-270213 http://www.olpcnews.com/countries/afghanistan/olpc_afghanistan_impact_resear.html#comment-270211 2009-06-26T03:51:01Z 2009-06-26T03:51:01Z

Nice feed, thanks for the information.

eduardo montez <p>Nice feed, thanks for the information.<br /> </p> <img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/OLPCNewsRecentComments/~4/nkw6JwhWH1c" height="1" width="1"/> http://www.olpcnews.com/countries/afghanistan/olpc_afghanistan_impact_resear.html#comment-270211 http://www.olpcnews.com/countries/afghanistan/olpc_afghanistan_impact_resear.html#comment-270210 2009-06-25T18:31:46Z 2009-06-25T18:31:46Z

Eduardo, The best & most comprehensive OLPCorps feed is here: http://tinyurl.com/olpcorps-feed I've compiled even more OLPCorps bloggers than planet.laptop.org

Wayan Vota <p>Eduardo,</p> <p>The best & most comprehensive OLPCorps feed is here: <a href="http://tinyurl.com/olpcorps-feed">http://tinyurl.com/olpcorps-feed</a></p> <p>I've compiled even more OLPCorps bloggers than planet.laptop.org</p> <img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/OLPCNewsRecentComments/~4/HdZss8BXI3E" height="1" width="1"/> http://www.olpcnews.com/countries/afghanistan/olpc_afghanistan_impact_resear.html#comment-270210 http://www.olpcnews.com/countries/afghanistan/olpc_afghanistan_impact_resear.html#comment-270207 2009-06-25T18:06:08Z 2009-06-25T18:06:08Z

Sounds great. Olpc really need this sort of well-planned evaluation. And I am glad that it is extending beyond education to health and economic development. I think people make a great mistake in thinking of olpc as having only educational significance. Networked computers have thousands of different uses, and so we should expect that communities will make good use of XO's in all sorts of areas. By the way, planet.laptop.org has a number of recent reports on OLPCorps.

eduardo montez <p>Sounds great. Olpc really need this sort of well-planned evaluation. And I am glad that it is extending beyond education to health and economic development. I think people make a great mistake in thinking of olpc as having only educational significance. Networked computers have thousands of different uses, and so we should expect that communities will make good use of XO's in all sorts of areas.</p> <p>By the way, planet.laptop.org has a number of recent reports on OLPCorps.</p> <img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/OLPCNewsRecentComments/~4/HHRTPr1UqsE" height="1" width="1"/> http://www.olpcnews.com/countries/afghanistan/olpc_afghanistan_impact_resear.html#comment-270207 http://www.olpcnews.com/people/olpcorps/olpcorps_africa_rwanda_training.html#comment-270206 2009-06-25T03:38:50Z 2009-06-25T03:38:50Z

Katie, you wouldn't know how important your rollercoaster note is, and how much we respect your courage. It is not we like "bad news", it is that we like our news balanced, and very few people dare to report negative results. Why? who knows, maybe they are afraid they will be blamed, personally. Probably you were taught in College that even unexpected, "negative" results are important in science, as much, and sometimes even more than to "prove" something right away. Those of us who have been a while around projects in developing countries tend to grow suspicious when no problems

Yama Ploskonka <p>Katie, you wouldn't know how important your rollercoaster note is, and how much we respect your courage. <br /> It is not we like "bad news", it is that we like our news balanced, and very few people dare to report negative results. Why? who knows, maybe they are afraid they will be blamed, personally.<br /> Probably you were taught in College that even unexpected, "negative" results are important in science, as much, and sometimes even more than to "prove" something right away. <br /> Those of us who have been a while around projects in developing countries tend to grow suspicious when no problems are reported, and instead OLPC officials serve infomercials on how everything will be OK and get sorted out by itself.<br /> Of course we wish for good news. Either kind needs evidence. Your post shared evidence, maybe the largest percentage of all the evidence that has been shared so far on how the OLPCorps training happened. Good and not so good. <br /> If OLPCorps and the Learning Team were more open in sharing informations, it would be easier not to have growing, serious concerns about how this will end up.<br /> We are most grateful to you.<br /> And allow me to repeat your invitation to all, the olpckenema blog is worth following direct, also, though IMHO the "newsy" approach Wayan gave it has its place also.</p> <img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/OLPCNewsRecentComments/~4/7FzWtK9zMOw" height="1" width="1"/> http://www.olpcnews.com/people/olpcorps/olpcorps_africa_rwanda_training.html#comment-270206