Of course, Negroponte has faced such criticism earlier too. So when sceptics call the plan ‘impractical’ and ‘not feasible,’ he points to Uruguay, the OLPC's model nation. There, the federal government has pledged to meet the challenge of one laptop per child, and has purchased 100,000 with an additional 200,000 in the works.
Uruguay even recently released a commemorative stamp that features a child using the laptop. "There, the laptop has become part of the educational ecosystem," says Negroponte, showcasing the XO laptop stamp with pride.
He also mentions that early studies in Uruguay have shown that the XO laptop encourages disadvantaged students to enrol in school.
For instance, one rural village experienced an over 100 per cent increase in first-graders after the laptops were introduced.
Image: A child working on his XO laptop. | Photograph: Sanjay Sawant
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