Oct 15 2008
CScott’s Journal Remix Proposal
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Oct 06 2008
OLPC Rwanda: The Laptops Arriving at Nonko
I am currently interning for One Laptop per Child, a non-profit organization with the goal of placing a laptop in the hands of every child. To that end, OLPC developed the XO, a low-cost, rugged laptop designed with developing countries in mind. It has a built-in camera and microphone, and a screen was specially designed to be sunlight-readable. The open source software stack installed on the laptop includes Sugar, a user interface designed for use by kids. You can also pour a 2 liter bottle of Mountain Dew on the keyboard and touchpad (water-proof), drop it to the ground from a meter (shock-proof), and then after accidentally leaving it in the desert for a week (dust-proof), throw it in the freezer. It will still be working — this thing is robust. The standard procedure goes: countries run a pilot program or two, consider the results, buy the laptops in bulk, and then distribute them to their primary school-aged children en masse.
The laptop:
(Some of) its robustness:
Near the end of 2007, OLPC tried something very interesting – running a program where donors in the United States and Canada could “Give One, Get One” (or, G1G1). Donors pay for two laptops (~$200 each); one gets delivered to the donor (or their child), and one gets delivered to a developing country.
The program, though it only ran for two months, may be considered a wild success. The orders resulted in thousands of Give laptops being donated. OLPC sells the laptops at price (in the G1G1 program and to countries directly), so the cost of two laptops was attractive to the donors, even as a “one laptop purchase”.
Set your mental image-clocks forward to September, 2008. I am in Kigali, Rwanda to offer my assistance to the local core team.
Two schools had already received laptops: Rwamagana and Kagugu primary schools. The laptops were in these schools as a direct result of the 2007 G1G1 program.
I met Juliano Bittencourt, the OLPC Learning Team person-in-Rwanda, the Thursday I arrived in the city. He helped me settle in. He had internet!
Monday. Kigali, Rwanda.
The plan was to go work with the core team, they were out doing Scratch lessons at their schools. Before I leave, though, Juliano calls and tells me to meet him… we are going to Nonko, a school I hadn’t heard of quite yet.
On the way, “they are deploying their laptops today”.
We arrive, and just in time. The laptop boxes (5 XOs in each) are almost completely stacked.
The ceremony is about to start.
I wondered how the kids followed what the speakers were saying. Even I was distracted by opening of the boxes. Then again, they could speak Kinyarwanda, the language of the presentations, and I couldn’t.
During the presentation ceremony, students performed one poem and two songs (with dancing).
Listen to one of the songs:
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It was then announced that the students would get to take the laptops home.
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(alt text: wild applause)
The laptops were handed out.
The laptops were registered.
The laptops are theirs!
After the deployment, the students have been accompanied by 3 members of the spectacular Rwandan Core Team, who have been leading projects with them and their teachers utilizing the activities Scratch, Paint, Write, Record and Speak. You’ll be very surprised to see what the kids have been able to do in just a couple of weeks with their laptops.
The core team and Juliano:
