Fluff Piece in Peru OLPC.

--Update--

It looks like eSchoolNews has been lifting works done on other sites and not giving proper credit to their sources. I incorrectly attributed this story to eSchoolNews. Gary Stager correctly pointed out to me (thanks for reading my blog, by the way) that the story first appeared as an AP article. I have removed the link to eSchoolNews and have redirected to the AP article itself on Yahoo. Frank Bajak gets the ire now from my post.

However, check my later post that has links to the AP photos from the village of Arahuay.

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Laptop project enlivens Peruvian hamlet

I am a bit disappointed in this piece by Frank Bajak about the OLPC in Peru. The article indicates early that there is new information that would help waylay the early criticisms of the project. However, what I see in the article is the same interest a child shows in a new toy, and not early indications of the success of the program. This article lacks any substantive change in the school. Sure, the school focused on in this story did have its population jump by 10 when word spread they were getting laptops. I would argue the population might have jumped the same if the school were getting mobile carts and smartboards.

At this point, to say early indications of the OLPC program will ease skepticism is glib. There is nothing here that shows:

1. A paradigm shift in the school (beyond there being a laptop).
2. Nothing more than childlike interest in the XOs.
3. Learning.
4. How the teachers have changed the way they teach. Are they more constructivist? Do they even know what that means?

I am not saying these changes aren't happening. What I am saying is this article does a poor job of demonstrating these changes if they are happening.