I'll ask you the so-far unanswered question: what do you plan to do with them other then hand them out?

Beyond the first couple of hours, the time when the novelty starts to wear off, what's the plan for making education happen? There are no course materials, curricula, teacher training, testing regime. The kid gets a computer with some neat capabilities, the Squeak programming environment, some other software-based capabilities and that's about it.

What are the kids going to learn? How are they going to learn it? Where are the learning materials, programs, whatever, going to come from? Certainly not the OLPC Foundation.

Dr. Negroponte's already made it clear that the organizational recipient or nation is on the hook for just about everything once the shipping container hits the dock. Are your organizational resources deep enough to handle all that?

Actually, this has come up before on OLPCnews. I have little time now, so I will only link to the headers:

http://www.olpcnews.com/software/applications/
http://www.olpcnews.com/use_cases/education/

And an example I wrote myself:
http://www.olpcnews.com/content/localization/american_laptop_child.html

Winter

Sorry,

my previous post was a response tot eh first comment, more specifically to:

"Beyond the first couple of hours, the time when the novelty starts to wear off, what's the plan for making education happen? There are no course materials, curricula, teacher training, testing regime. The kid gets a computer with some neat capabilities, the Squeak programming environment, some other software-based capabilities and that's about it."

Winter

Ted,

I'm located near Naples and would like to talk to you about getting involved. Please contact me through the email I used to leave this comment.

Thanks,

Lisa

There are plenty of dirt poor people right here in the U.S.. Making poor Americans pay twice as much for these laptops is a travesty. MIT and anyone else concerned with this enterprise should lose any federal funding or tax breaks they might currently enjoy.

Here's a new slogan... "OLPC, if you're a poor child in Louisiana or Appalachia, F. You!"

I'd like to help, too. Maybe with enough people, we can convince Negroponte & company that the OLPC is needed here in the US and in other developed nations also, and that these are in fact, complimentary, not competitive, goals.

You may e-Mail me at the e-Mail I've used to post this as well, or anyone interested here can e-Mail me at webmaster at my screen name dot net.

my previous post was a response tot eh first comment, more specifically to:

"Beyond the first couple of hours, the time when the novelty starts to wear off, what's the plan for making education happen? There are no course materials, curricula, teacher training, testing regime. The kid gets a computer with some neat capabilities, the Squeak programming environment, some other software-based capabilities and that's about it."

I followed the links you cited as a response and I have to say they don't really address the criticism above.

Mark

A few people have asked here how the laptops would help those poor children become 'not poor'.

I guess in many respects children are poor because their parents are poor. Families live in poverty for many reasons, mostly socio-economic ones. More often the parents themselves were poorly educated and when you are at the bottom of the laborpool its hard to find a job.

So will giving a laptop to a child in Florida actually help them out of poverty? In the short term it makes more sense to help the parents become self sufficient. Sadly, poorly educated parents are in epidemic proportions in some parts of the US (what was that song lyric? Only stupid people are breeding?)

Perhaps people like Ted Coiné of Napels Social Action should look at helping the parents (I'm sure they do already) and improving the social fabric of the community so that children will live in a better society.

Giving kids laptops in the current poor economy does nothing if it is not part of the education reform that the US sorely needs.

The teachers unions in America would never allow something like the OLPC program. They will destroy any form of alternative education.

"NEA Hostility to Homeschoolers
The NEA delegates made their animosity against homeschoolers loud and clear. They passed a resolution demanding that children be permitted to be homeschooled only if their parents are licensed as teachers by the state education licensure agency. The NEA also demanded that the homeschool curriculum be approved by the state department of education. Of course, the reason why parents go to the extreme trouble and time commitment of homeschooling is that they don't want their children to be taught what is being taught in the public schools." http://www.eagleforum.org/psr/2005/aug05/psraug05.html

"programs for the nation's 3 million academically gifted students like Alex are disappearing from schools throughout Illinois and the rest of the country." http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/education/jan-june04/education_05-25.html

I noticed that Intel and other companies are trying to compete for profit. I think that's pathetic. I support NNegroponte & OLPC cause. You should perhaps expose this information to more Americans about the intentions of Intel and others on their greediness. Maybe get a few actors and famous preformers to support OLPC. This is an imformative way to let Americans know, since most are so caught up with them anyway. Best of Luck! BTW I am sure you will eventually begin sales in the US and I'll be the one of the first in line!

I believe that the position to limit sales to industrialized nations is a solid one in that it will not create the impact here that it would in other nations where resources are in such short supply. However, I must say that Negroponte is missing out on a huge opportunity to finance OLPC's dream of putting these laptops in the hands of all children. I am sure that the noble people that are offering to purchase these laptops would still be willing to purchase them for $250 dollars. While this price increase may seem unfair, I think it would be beneficial in providing these resources to America's impoverished youth while providing funding for the continued distribution of these laptops overseas.

I think it should give to people who needed it the most - Disabled and Blind adult, youth and children. They are home bound and boring. Giving them computer, software that can read the screen, internet training and access (does any provider currently have free access to disabled people?). Their world will be opened and they can chat and learn at home.

dear helper,
Am cedrick a young student who need help from people and am begging u see into my situation.

Dear sir,
We are running an Orphanage of 35 children in
Nagapattinam, South India.(The most Tsunami affected area). We have no facilities to provide them a good education an etc..

We need educational facilities, because here there is no school nearby. They go to school for 2 kilometers apart.

We saw in your website that you provide laptop for needy children. If God spoken to you, Kindly help us. God will help you Richly.

Zion Ministries Trust,
No.1, NGO Colony,
Kadambadi,
Nagapattinam - 611001.
Email : zionchurchnagai@yahoo.com
Phone no : 919443152269
9194365249029.

Dear Sir,

King James is my name and i hailed from Accra the capital city of Ghana.

I am 26 years old and a student persuing a diploma in management information system and education in one of the colleges in Ghana.From my studies, I have come to realised the importance of information and communication studies and the impact it can have on the individual and on a country as a whole.I therefore, took on the challenge of impacting my knowledge to the less privillaged in my viccinity and i was sore amazed at their response to this assistance. However, there are alot of people who have shown interest in studying this program but am facing this setback of lack of enough computers to smooth scalled our program.Since i so desire to extand this gesture to other less privilleges who are far and wide within my country, i decided to search for an assistance in every possible way. Through my search i came accross your organisation and the wonderful things you are doing to promote IT knowledge to the world at large.

Moreso, i want to enquire from your organisation that though we teach many less privillage,we have not neccesarily organised any form of Ngo because we never thought of that. Therefore i want to find out from your organisation whether you can render an assistance to a course like this that is run by me and a couple of able and competend friends or unless we have a registered NGO organisation? Hope to hear favourably from you soon.

faithfully yours,

King James Adjei

New Delhi

Mr. Parhalad Kumar Aggarwal, who was born in tribal area of Lang village of Ambika Pur region of Madhya Pradesh now residing in Delhi, has always faced tough times in his life right from his childhood. Firstly his mother has been a mentally retarded person because of whom his educated father also became homeless as he could not manage his business and property and also could not pay enough attention towards his children. Mr. Parhalad Kumar Aggarwal some how grew up facing such hardship in his life and he could not get that education as a child which he deserved like other children but he walked on the way of social work as it has been seen generally that such child either go for some criminal way or become victim of some anti-social habits. But Mr. Parhalad Kumar Aggarwal kept himself miles away from all these things, rather Mr. Parhalad Kumar Aggarwal made an objective as “ I have faced the hardship in my life and no body came in front to hold my hand and help me, I will always help at my level-best whoever will come to seek my help”. Mr. Parhalad Kumar Aggarwal was also getting success in his this objective but some mean people tried to divert him from his way for their own political benefits. Still Mr. Parhalad Kumar Aggarwal kept going on his way of honesty and helping others steadily. Mr. Parhalad Kumar Aggarwal has also been attacked several times. His wife who is a religious and God-faithing lady always help and supported him in his good deed. In spite of all this, as Mr. Parhalad Kumar Aggarwal is financially weak, is unable to give his children that education which they deserve. He wants to give his children international-level education so that as he has been deprived of quality education in his childhood, his children may not be deprived off. But Mr. Parhalad Kumar Aggarwal’s son (Prankur, aging 5 years resident of Delhi, India) is not getting admission to any convent school, the biggest reason of which is his poorness. Will you not help such social worker who always believes in god, who has always faced bad times in his life and has always help those who has come to seek his help? If you will help Mr. Parhalad Kumar Aggarwal to seek admission for his son (Prankur) in a good convent school, then Mr. Aggarwal who though is unable to give you something in return but will definitely pray to God for your happiness.

Please give this appeal a suitable place in your news paper.

Parhalad Kumar Aggarwal
B-58/149, Guru Nanak Pura, Laxmi Nagar, Delhi-110092
Contact No.- 00919911099737
E-mail: parhlad_aggarwal@yahoo.co.in

Dear Sir
iam run ngo iwant donation for one child one laptop please help me
mr ashok kad
+919850163214

please i need a laptop but can't afford one but i'm a student and need one seriously for my research works in school.

i want a laptop