> A fundamental aspect of the project was to rethink education in relationship with technology.
Disclaimer: I worked on early software for the OLPC (had an original dev board) for a group that (long after I left) went on to win the Global Learning X-Prize [1].
I actually think the issue with the OLPC not achieving its goals is that they focused too much on the hardware and not what software was on the device and the learning outcomes the software delivered for children. The classic "here's some tech go figure out what to do with it" approach doesn't work. There was more interest in teaching to code and open software rather than basic numeracy and literacy. Content is king here.
That's why initiatives like those of the winners of the Global Learning X-Prize[1] have shown measurable impact on learning outcomes.
Disclaimer: I worked on early software for the OLPC (had an original dev board) for a group that (long after I left) went on to win the Global Learning X-Prize [1].
I actually think the issue with the OLPC not achieving its goals is that they focused too much on the hardware and not what software was on the device and the learning outcomes the software delivered for children. The classic "here's some tech go figure out what to do with it" approach doesn't work. There was more interest in teaching to code and open software rather than basic numeracy and literacy. Content is king here.
That's why initiatives like those of the winners of the Global Learning X-Prize[1] have shown measurable impact on learning outcomes.
[1] https://www.xprize.org/prizes/global-learning