With the growth in technology in the last few decades, one obvious application of these advances has been in education. Software, television, teleconferencing, computers, and the Internet have been adapted to aid teaching through the world. The Internet alone has completely altered the way in which students research information and has facilitated distance education and has led to an increase in the spread of ideas. However, as the developed world applies these advances, the less developed world is struggling. Although some applications are being implemented in these countries, officials are still debating the best use of that technology. Considering the current attempts, one can see that officials are not utilizing the money being spent on technology in the most effective manner, often due to the limitations of hardware and software.

A Proposed Solution

In recent months, one of the most discussed technologies is a laptop, valued at US$100, being designed by the MIT Media Lab Chairman, Nicholas Negroponte. This laptop is being developed specifically for children in less developed countries. According to Negroponte, it is “an education project, not a laptop [project].” It consists of a low-power screen with two modes: a color mode that uses more power and a black and white mode that is designed to act as a book. It features a mesh wireless network, which allows the computers to connect to each other and then ultimately to the Internet, as opposed to a single Internet point. This allows the computers to be spread out farther from each other, which is important in the more rural areas of the countries being targeted. Electricity can be used to power the machine like any other computer, but a crank is also included that would allow the laptop to be powered in rural places that do not have regular access to a power system. The hardware consists of a 1-gigabyte flash memory chip and a 500 megahertz processor. It will run an open-source operating system and use mainly open-source software.

This laptop has since been purchased by Libya for all 1.2 million of its schoolchildren and is scheduled to be delivered in June 2008. The deal also includes several other amenities, such as a server in each school, technical support, and satellite Internet service, and its total cost will be US$250 million. Plans for Libya to buy laptops for poorer African states, such as Chad and Rwanda are also being discussed. Other countries also have tentative purchase agreements, including Argentina and Brazil. Clearly, this program has attracted an immense amount of support from governments around the world.

Many private companies have attempted to bridge the technological divide in third world. One such company is BusyInternet, which set up telecommunication centers that allowed people in Africa to communicate with the rest of the world through the Internet. Although there have been several other similar programs over the last few years, acceptance has not been widespread, and these programs are often limited to only a small area, such as BusyInternet’s primary focus on Ghana. Furthermore, these expansions are often not used for educational purposes but are attempts at bridging the digital divide between developed and developing countries by merely providing Internet and computer access to these portions of the world. BusyInternet, for instance, claims that it focuses on providing “commercial services as well as social development.” Thus, most funds that have been dedicated to increasing the use of technology in educating people of Third World countries are in the form of the aforementioned computer.

Addressing Complications

With this laptop and its associated programs exist many problems, all of which are not clearly addressed. One major problem is that of distribution. Ideally, and in accordance with the program, all schoolchildren will receive the laptop, which would be paid for by the government. However, such a system of equity is nearly impossible. It is inevitable that some children will be favored, such as those with parents with more political influence or perhaps those that live in more urban areas. Distributing 1.2 million laptops in Libya alone is nearly impossible—never mind the rest of the developing world.

Another issue is the cost of keeping the laptop, as opposed to selling it. Although the laptop will likely aid the child in learning, at least to some degree, and allow him or her to become connected to the world through the Internet, it is unlikely to have a financial impact on the family. If anything, the laptop will reduce the time allowed by the child to earn a wage elsewhere. Considering the opportunity cost of keeping the laptop and the option selling it for approximately $100, the family is likely to choose the latter.

In addition, the setup required by these laptops is nearly impossible in many areas. One reason is that the laptop makes use of mesh network technology; however, this requires individual laptops to be within a close distance of each other, at most several hundred feet. Although this may seem like a minor problem, in reality, especially in developing countries, the most rural areas may have laptops spread out across miles. Even if the laptops are close to each other, the technology would still require access to a central wireless point at some point in the mesh network. A student would only receive Internet access when in close range of other students and when at least one student is within a central access point. Without the Internet and the resulting connection with the world, the main purpose of the laptop is negated.

The power requirement of the laptop makes its use nearly impossible in ordinary situations. Although the laptop does come equipped with a hand crank, such a device would require recharging often. The official specifications of the project do state that one minute of cranking will provide approximately ten minutes of energy for the device. There is much speculation, however, that more energy would be required and this ten minutes of energy for one minute of cranking rating is only for the use of the screen in black and white mode, its lowest power consumption state. Normal use of the device, such as browsing the Internet, would require much more cranking for the equivalent ten minutes of use.