Olpc

One learning child. One connected child. One laptop at a time.

It’s not a laptop project. It’s an education project. In 2002, MIT Professor Nicholas Negroponte experienced first-hand how connected laptops transformed the lives of children and their families in a remote Cambodian village. A seed was planted: If every child in the world had access to a computer, what potential could be unlocked? What problems could be solved? These questions eventually led to the foundation of: One Laptop per Child , and the creation of the: XO laptop.

OLPC’s mission is: to provide a means for learning, self-expression, and exploration to the nearly two billion children of the developing world with little or no access to education. While children are by nature eager for knowledge, many countries have insufficient resources to devote to education—sometimes less than $20 per year per child (compared to an average of $7,500 in the United States). By giving children their very own connected XO laptop, we are giving them a window to the outside world, access to vast amounts of information, a way to connect with each other, and a springboard into their future. And we’re also helping these countries develop an essential resource— educated, empowered children.

The Laptop Built-in microphone Built-in speakers

Built-in camera

Backlit screen

Game controller

Game pad

Screen rotation External headphones & microphone jacks

SD memory slot Antennae ears

USB/memory ports

Power jack

Keyboard

Rechargeable battery

Split track pad Wi-Fi

The Children

Software NewsReader Download Browse Chat TamTam Jam TamTam Edit Record Measure Write Draw The Journal

What children are saying “I want to thank the initiators because they brought the laptop to us. I'm really thanking them. I pray that God will give them more knowledge, and God also gives them more spirit of giving, so that they help us more, especially those children in junior classes that don't have it, so they could equally have it and have the knowledge.” ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ “I use my computer very carefully so that it will not spoil. I use it to type, I use it to write, I use it to draw, I use it to play games... I'm using my computer at home to type assignments.” ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ “I think the laptop is very good. It helps us to find some words, like our uncle [teacher] will teach us... The things we didn't know, we go check on the laptop.” ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ “I want to thank you people because you had given us the laptop and I love it so much. It's very good. Because you can see lots of things.”

What teachers are saying “Before the laptop, the focus of the school curriculum and evaluation was to show what students don't know. Now, the focus is in what the student knows, and how this knowledge can be used as a support so they learn even more.” ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ “With the laptop we can say that our school is really elevated because the children are really learning more... They see themselves discovering things that they have never been doing before.” ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ “The bringing of the laptop into the school has brought a transformation into the school... It has brought another idea of how to teach better: now we see that teaching is not more abstract; it's something that pupils can see, and they catch on better.” ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ “Pupils go even beyond what I can teach in the class. It's a very interesting thing to use. I personally have a better idea about teaching... We discovered that giving them time to discover something and to do it in their own way, they feel more happy and they are so excited in using it that, ‘Yes, I discovered it! Yes, I can get it!! Yes, I can do this on my own!!!’ Teaching is getting more interesting and less stressful.” ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ “Some children are naturally faster than the others; we discovered that they go ahead of the class. They can teach their mates that, ‘Look I got it, this is how you do it, this is how you do it, this is how you do it.’ This way the slower children also are catching up. When the children can learn on their own, apart from what they can learn in class, they go faster above their mates in other places.”