<html><head><style type="text/css"></style></head><body><div style="font-family:times new roman,new york,times,serif;font-size:12pt"><div>I meant that it would be useful to hear your answers to your questions if you only had "all the books you could ever want in plentiful enough quantities" instead of any computers.<br><br>Cheers,<br><br>Alan<br></div><div style="font-family: times new roman,new york,times,serif; font-size: 12pt;"><br><div style="font-family: times new roman,new york,times,serif; font-size: 12pt;"><font size="2" face="Tahoma"><hr size="1"><b><span style="font-weight: bold;">From:</span></b> Tabitha Roder <tabitha@tabitha.net.nz><br><b><span style="font-weight: bold;">To:</span></b> Alan Kay <alan.nemo@yahoo.com><br><b><span style="font-weight: bold;">Cc:</span></b> iaep@lists.sugarlabs.org<br><b><span style="font-weight: bold;">Sent:</span></b> Mon, July 19, 2010 5:11:45 AM<br><b><span style="font-weight: bold;">Subject:</span></b> Re: [IAEP] Contents of IAEP Digest, Vol 28, Issue 24<br></font><br> On 19 July 2010 00:26, Alan Kay <span dir="ltr"><<a rel="nofollow" ymailto="mailto:alan.nemo@yahoo.com" target="_blank" href="mailto:alan.nemo@yahoo.com">alan.nemo@yahoo.com</a>></span> wrote:<br><div class="gmail_quote"><blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="border-left: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); margin: 0pt 0pt 0pt 0.8ex; padding-left: 1ex;"> <div><div style="font-family: times new roman,new york,times,serif; font-size: 12pt;">Though there are a few truly important differences between books and laptops, it would be really worth while to get *your* answers to your questions with regard to having any and all books that one could desire in the same educational situations in NZ.<br> <br></div></div></blockquote><div>I am not entirely sure I understand. In NZ we have computers in every school, just not many computers. Unfortunately we don't take the approach that olpc recommends. We don't have:<br> * child ownership (and the empowerment that goes with that, I don't feel the benefits of learning outside and school and within community are as widely recognised as it should be)<br>* low ages (computers are used a little bit at all ages in most schools, but learn by play is mostly for preschool here, then it gets more and more serious and unplay like as school years go on for some sad reason)<br> * saturation (1 or 2 computers per class)<br>* connection (schools have internet mostly, but that does not translate to connection between kids creating, constructing knowledge together)<br>* free and open source (an area being worked on by a few fierce voices, and growing awareness is occuring in schools but there are politics to overcome as much as understanding to build)<br> <br>I think new teachers entering our schools know about the theory of constructionism and social constructivism, but I don't know how many can translate that theory into practice, or how well our education system allows for this. I think we can do more thinking about thinking about ways to think (thanks for the essays Marvin), utilising networks more and providing appropriate mentors. <br> <br><span>There is a high school in NZ that is leading changes to our education sector. Albany Senior High School - <a target="_blank" href="http://ashs.school.nz/">http://ashs.school.nz/</a> and <a target="_blank" href="http://theopensourceschool.blogspot.com/">http://theopensourceschool.blogspot.com/</a> are good places to see a completely open source school by design. Open source matches their teaching philosophy. They run a unique timetable with 100 minute blocks, "impact projects" on Wednesdays which are students working on their own developments, tutorials and community development time. The school has shared learning spaces not classrooms. There are some other schools that use open source software but this one is the most public presently.</span><br> <br>I think the view of technology and its application for learning need to change in NZ.<br><br>Tabitha<br></div></div> </div></div> </div><br> </body></html>