School is a huge, huge confounding factor in any study of education. Kids exhibit extreme reactance against anything pushed in school. The educational theories that OLPC is based on assume that kids will enjoy exploring and learning, but in a school setting, this is unlikely. A study like this (which is, of course, exploratory and thus mostly only as a guide to what to study next) is a better design, although of course it’s harder to perform.
Full disclosure: I have friends who have worked on OLPC, but we pretty much haven’t talked about the project.
How many of us learned to use computers for fun despite teachers who made us type assignments and parents who gave us educational games (I’m remembering “Math Blaster”)?
Everyone on this site enjoys learning (mostly despite schooling), but we’re not exactly typical. As far as I know, nobody has yet done a randomized study of unschooling (with educational resources available), against traditional schooling.
School is a huge, huge confounding factor in any study of education. Kids exhibit extreme reactance against anything pushed in school. The educational theories that OLPC is based on assume that kids will enjoy exploring and learning, but in a school setting, this is unlikely. A study like this (which is, of course, exploratory and thus mostly only as a guide to what to study next) is a better design, although of course it’s harder to perform.
Full disclosure: I have friends who have worked on OLPC, but we pretty much haven’t talked about the project.
How many of us learned to use computers for fun despite teachers who made us type assignments and parents who gave us educational games (I’m remembering “Math Blaster”)?
Everyone on this site enjoys learning (mostly despite schooling), but we’re not exactly typical. As far as I know, nobody has yet done a randomized study of unschooling (with educational resources available), against traditional schooling.