A study of the use of the laptop XO in Brazilian pilot schools

Abstract

This article presents a study on the perception of 63 students and 15 teachers of two Brazilian public school, which took part in the pilot test of the OLPC educational laptop XO. For the students, the XO turned classes more attractive mainly because they changed from individual learning to collective research. The internet, the games and the learning aid are the most important XO's functionalities but gender and age impacted the results. Boys value the laptop for its recreation attribute while girls use the computer for interaction with people and to improve learning at school. Younger students like mostly the games while the older ones value the social interaction and research. The XO design is suitable for students under 6 years old but considered too toyful by the older ones. Rather than an educational tool, the students recognize the XO as a means of communication/entertainment. Despite an initial resistance to the OLPC project, the teachers understand that the introduction of a laptop as a pedagogical tool was worthy, because it enhanced learning, communication and social skills. Technical problems should be override and a sustainability plan should be promoted before the educational project is implemented countrywide.