OLPC Program

One Laptop per Child OLPC

The Genious of the One Laptop per Child (OLTC) Program

Using technology to overcome poverty and other lessons of socioeconomic differencesBy: Joseph Hall

First There Was PovertyMost of the countries of the world are

saddled with overwhelming povertypoverty.Children are trapped in a centuries old

pattern of impoverished behaviors.Their education is typically

overshadowed by pressures of wars and pressures of economics.

They often work in slave labor.

Then There Were ComputersIn the second half of last century

personal computers rocked the first- world countries with a tool that provided entertainment, did complex math functions and helped put Neil Armstrong on the moon.

People in third-world countries starved, mined the earth for diamonds they could not keep, and died early deaths.

Next there was a VisionThe co-founder of MIT’s media labs

saw education as a transformation process for teaching impoverished children a new method of understanding.

Nicholas Negroponte saw laptop computers as the change agent.

A cheap but well-built and self-contained laptop unit that could survive a harsh environment.

The Vision Created NeedThe rich said, “Who will pay?”

The manufactures said, “We will have to give too much.”

The developers said, “It won’t work.”

Mr.. Negroponte had a passion.

The Power of a Not-for-ProfitNegroponte decided to move forward, He created a not-for-profit organization

to affect change.People could focus on the need, not

on personal greed.The struggle to produce a $100 laptop

became a goal, not a mantra.Achievement was measured in lives

changed, not fortunes accumulated.

A Star was Born Negroponte started with a goal that is quite

impossible.

Add financing for development of new hardware and software for OLPC.

Donations were solicited for the program.

Corporations and private citizens worked together (cooperation).

Counteries Became Interested Countries from Ethiopia to Paraguay began

to inquire about the OLPC laptops

Schools were transformed into centers for wireless learning.

Children were observing, collaborating, and writing simple computer programs.

Lives were being changed.

What Bleeping (Genius??)Traditional for-profit companies must

answer stockholder demands to remain profitable (this is slow).

The OLPC program had as a goal to reduce the price to make it more available (what kind of business is this?)

There was not a crush of salespersons to add to the confusion to offer a cheaper or better product (decision- making is much simpler).

What’s the Bleeping Benefit?Children are learning not workingCollaboration occurs where isolation is

the normPossibilities are being explored, not

funerals attendedThe economy is going crazy!! This too

will pass!Education is flowing like hope!

Where are the Bleeping Profits?This victory is over poverty

This process engenders understanding

Lives are filled with meaning

The battle is shifting from the power of guns to the power of knowledge

The New InvestorEducation is a gift

Quality of life issues are improved

Poverty is reduced

Invest in life not markets

Genius? No??

References Franco, J. (2007). First hints of OLPC at

work in Peru, Information Technology, Retrieved 12 Feb, 2009, from: http://www.techspot.com/news/28361-first-hints-of-olpc-at-work-in-peru.html

$100 laptop... Billion-dollar idea. (n.d.) Retrieved February 12, 2009 from: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UvpP3Farb2g

The Future of $100 Laptop in 2017 - An OLPC scenario. (n.d.) Retrieved February 12, 2009 from: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f3m7f0WgWNM