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One laptop per elementary school kids, in Uruguay.

Uruguay is about to achieve the 1:1 child/laptop ratio for every primary school student in the country via OLPC (One Laptop Per Child). Only 5% of the country's education budget was needed to achieve this.

Big companies like Tata Interactive Systems (TIS) are involved. Affordability is made high through 3-5yr contract with monthly payments. ''Child centric concepts'' are widely being accepted the article says. The challenge they mention here is internet connectivity. No mention about PD or reaction from parents. Also there seem to be still a wide gap in access between private schools and public schools there. 

One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) implementation in Australia seems to bring positive results. In remote, largely indigenous northwest Queensland, Doomadgee, 3rd grade students' numeracy improved from 31 per cent last year to a staggering 95 per cent in 2011.

GoGoNews, an online news resource for children, announced that OLPC XO laptops will feature GoGoNews App in the collection of default applications. Through GoGoNews app, children can read filtered headline news, as well as art, cultural science, or fun topics, and play online games.

"Skid-e-Kids says it offers children help with homework and parents a dashboard to keep tabs on what their kids are up to. "Skid-e-Kids is the only social network that is truly committed to not only keeping our children safe, but also making sure that they are systematically learning while they are having fun," the site promises."

The school I am interning at (The Carroll School) is using this in their middle school math classes. Small class sizes typically (4-8 kids /  class), and it's a 1:1 school where every child has a laptop. But - it's working well for designated independent work time in the math classes I've observed- where each kid is asked to play the game for 15 minutes on their own. Kids have their own profiles- and there are several different math mini games they can play, each game focusing on different math skills. Each mini game involves different game mechanics and art styles. But all games involve using arithmetic skills and math concepts to solve problems that progress them in the game. Good performance gives the kids in-game credits/money that they can use to customize their in-gam avatar. 

The tablet craze continues...a continuation of the "magic device" phenomenon

Hi T561- a bit old, but an international perspective on the inequality of technology access across the globe. This article links in with the TIE list discussions about the One Laptop Per Child effort as well. If we want to use technology to break down international barriers, like Dede's "Microsoft of the future" film, we have to address the issue of accessibility, both across the globe and within our own student population.

A report from Uruguay about the success (and troubles) of the One Laptop Per Child program

DC is keeping/firing teachers based on "grading" teachers in their successes with their students on standardized tests.

an example of technology providing access to a child that previously did not connect with computers

A child as young as 9 months can set goals when playing the apps in iphone. More and more parents let children play with their iphones. I-phones, which consist of many interesting apps and colorful designs, are easy to catch children's attention. Easy apps which can help children develop their basic skills (such as counting skills), do have great market and should be developed and improved.

This caught my attention - "systems must be designed not just to show how much children have improved, but also to provide guidance so that ineffective teachers get better."

"Quest" schools- a parent's view on sending her child to a school focused on game methodologies. 

A survey of 25 ed tech directors conducted by Piper Jaffray that is making the rounds in the tech blogosphere. Seems to fall in line with what we're learning and today's trends: all surveyed IT directors are interested in the iPad, not Android, they like the flexibility tablets would offer over computers, it's going to take some time for schools to achieve one tablet per child. Cost is an obvious concern, but so is device management.

This article describes a new iPad app that turns reading into an interactive learning experience by interjecting activities related to the book such as games and interludes where the reader plays songs on the iPad piano. The child can be read to by the app or read the story on their own. 

Interesting topic! One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) founder Nicholas Negroponte plans to airdrop tablet computers in remote villages and then come back a year later to see how it worked. Remember the movie "The Gods Must be Crazy" or the story of "Hole in the wall" in India? Here is the link (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m2_CjRbZ5EI)

A heads up for any one who is interested in EmTech, the premier conference focused on emerging technologies and their impact.

They also have a session on Emerging Technology in Education--second to last day, I think. edX, One-laptop-per-child, Institute of Play will be represented.