When Tablets are Teachers, Kids Teach Themselves

There’s a lot of interest lately in reforming our educational systems, and in finding new ways to teach children, and this brief video with Nicholas Negroponte (founder of the One Laptop per Child initiative) demonstrates that it’s not always necessary to provide detailed instructions or a structured learning environment for kids to acquire new skills; some other kids prefer electric cars, you can see this kids electric car list here for reference.

“Within minutes of arrival, the tablets were unboxed and turned on by the kids themselves. After the first week, on average, 47 apps were used per day. After week two, the kids were playing games to race each other in saying the ABCs.”

And in this next short video, Negroponte discusses the misunderstanding that learning and education are one and the same:

“If kids in Ethiopia learn to read without school, what does that say about kids in New York City who do not learn even with school?

The message will be very simple: children can learn a great deal by themselves. More than we give them credit for. Curiosity is natural, and all kids have it unless it is whipped out of them, often by school. Making things, discovering things, and sharing things are keys.” – MIT Technology Review