OLPC Oceania/Evaluation

Evaluation

In the initial trials we do not have the means to conduct an in-depth evaluation. However, we can extract what is workable and introduce a simple evaluation component from the start. The indicators need to be tuned to the timescale.

Each country will develop local interpretations of this top-level strategy.

Resource people needed

Teachers, education officers, independent observers, champions, volunteers. In the preparatory consultations, identify and select one teacher and one community representative and train them to collect monitoring data. Also identify an education officer and an independent person (maybe from an NGO with an interest, prepared to resource the process) who will be able to visit the school at key intervals – maybe after 2, 4 and 8 weeks.

A framework could include:

Indicators

• Appropriation
  • Children
    • How often are they using the laptops, using which activities, on their own and with others
    • What skills can they demonstrate, individually and in groups (measured non-obtrusively) Measurement: Hold a session at school where the children are free to use the laptops on their own or in groups, as they wish, and observe the group dynamics and note which activities are being used. Observe how groups are interacting – for instance, are all the participants involved in the learning and sharing? Allow them to explain what they are doing in an informal setting, without asking specific questions. Some problem solving tasks can be set. The session can be recorded with digital camera, video, and a survey form or template report for the observer to use.
  • Teachers
    • Are they learning to use the laptops in their class-work, and if so how, how much, what ideas have they developed regarding integrating the laptops into their teaching. Measurement: (see “educational impacts” below)
  • Families
    • What are the parent’s attitudes to the children using the laptops
    • Are other family members using the laptopsMeasurement: Hold a parents evening and hold open discussion. Follow up with simple questionnaire that the parents can take home. The community rep can follow up and help each family complete the forms. Committee can arrange for observers to visit homes, with permission of the families.
  • Community
    • What are the community’s attitudes to the laptops
    • Is the community finding the laptops useful, not only in education?
    • Is there any change in the way the community regards the schoolMeasurement: Community meeting
• Educational impact
  • Have the teachers adapted to more discovery learning / constructivist methods
  • Have the laptops helped the teachers directly in their teaching (i.e. access to resources, collaboration / communication, subject knowledge, pedagogical knowledge especially regarding constructionist learning....)
  • Is there a change to more child-centred approach in the classroomMeasurement: With the teachers’ permission and preferably led by the teacher, observe lessons in practice, non-obtrusively. Follow up with interviews using prepared questionnaires. The teachers can also keep log books of how they have used, the laptops, what ideas they have and other feedback.
• Information literacy
  • How many children, teachers and families are accessing information on the Internet, and are communicating via email (compared with before)Measurement: Can be included in the questionnaire (see “Appropriation: families”) plus observers can record their observations. Also via tasks set for the group session of children, as described above.
• Laptops
  • Technical problems with the laptops and how they were dealt with
  • Charging issues
  • Connectivity issues
  • Keyboard issues
  • Language issues (some feedback for the localisation program)

Things to look for in an OLPC project

The following is a collection of important things that OLPC projects have noted.

This is not intended to be a comprehensive list, or an evaluation template, however it may give you ideas of things to evaluate during your project.

Education Approaches of an OLPC Project

A core element of the OLPC program, as opposed to the tool of the laptop, is “Learning learning”.

The OLPC program is based on the Constructionalist Education theory, or learning by doing. It is also has a strong collaboration learning approach, encouraging students to share their experiences and learn together.

Some Education ministries are reforming their system to a more student centric approach to replace the teacher centric or instructional approach.

Generally there is a strong belief that the education system needs to change and with today’s affordable technology, especially the OLPC Laptop and Internet, the tools are available. The status quo for education in developed and developing countries is not acceptable.

Several OLPC projects are driven by the need to reform the education system. For example, Peru had tried many times to make incremental changes to their underperforming system with no success. Today, they find the Laptop and Internet are transforming the system very effectively.

The list

Here are some things that have been mentioned as positive outcomes from an OLPC project. Many of these observations come very early in the project.

This list could also be considered reasons for launching a project.

1. Reduced absenteeism
2. Greater engagement by children
3. Empowerment of teachers
4. Increased esteem of teachers
5. Reduced need of discipline
6. Less disruption by students
7. Increase in self esteem by students
8. Increased “connection” with the world (other cultures, languages, ideas)
9. Increased involvement by parents
10. School becomes the centre of the community
11. Development of a sharing culture (child to child, school to community, teacher to parent)
12. Much better results than with Computer Labs