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BBC Learning English
Words in the news
8th October 2008
Laptop learning in Italy
Words in the news © British Broadcasting Corporation 2008
Page 1 of 2
bbclearningenglish.com
Children at a school in Italy have today begun an experiment to replace all their books with
personal computers. The pupils involved will each be given a special laptop that contains
their entire curriculum. From Rome our correspondent Duncan Kennedy reports:
Until today, the Don Milani di Rivoli elementary school in central Turin was like any other.
Children turned up, got out their books and pens and began the process of learning. But now,
in what's being described as a unique experiment, 60 fifth-grade pupils and a number of thirdgraders,
will start using computers only.
The mini-laptops, which run Windows software, all have a full curriculum programmed into
them. The pupils will use the computers to do all their reading and writing. Security systems
within the laptops mean the children's access to the internet is strictly controlled. The
machines weigh less than a kilogram, can be dropped from a height of 1.5 metres and are
waterproof.
Instead of spending the equivalent of 700 dollars a year on books, the laptops, built by the
Italian company Olidata, cost less than 400 dollars. One of the teachers involved in the
scheme says that, for the first time, schools will be able to verify in a scientific way how a
computer alone can improve the learning process. The experiment, which has the backing of
parents, is due to last a year.
Duncan Kennedy, BBC News, Rome
Words in the news © British Broadcasting Corporation 2008
Page 2 of 2
bbclearningenglish.com
Vocabulary and definitions
elementary school a school that provides the first part of a child's education
(usually for children aged 5 - 11)
turned up here, came to school
grade a class or group of classes in a school where all the
children are of a similar age and/or ability
curriculum all the subjects taught at a school, college, university etc.
The word 'curriculum' can also be used to mean the same
as 'syllabus', i.e. the topics or books studied within a
subject
access to here, ability to surf/search/use
are waterproof cannot be damaged by water
the equivalent of the sum of money that amounts to/equals
involved in the scheme taking part in the experiment
to verify to prove that something is true or not
backing support, encouragement
More on this story: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7642985.stm
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/newsenglish/witn/2008/10/081008_italy_laptops.shtml
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7642985.stm
Venezuela is ordering one million low cost laptops for its school children.
The machines will be based on the Intel Classmate laptop that has been designed for school children.
Many see the deal as a blow for the One Laptop Per Child organisation that has also been touting its child-friendly machine to developing nations.
Venezuela is buying the portable computers as part of a $3bn (£1.66bn) bilateral trade deal with Portugal that also covers housing and utilities.
Computer clash
Portugal is manufacturing the blue and white laptops under licence from Intel and are broadly based on the chip maker's design of its Classmate computer.
Dubbed Magalhaes (Magellan), the laptops will have on board low-power Intel Atom chips designed for laptops. They will also sport digital cameras and a broadband net connection.
As an operating system, the machines will run a version of Linux developed in Venezuela.
The deal with Venezuela follows an agreement between Intel and Portugal, signed in August for Classmate machines.
Under that deal Portugal agreed to buy 500,000 machines to enable every six-to-10-year-old in the country to get one.
The deal to buy the machines is the largest yet for laptops created for school children.
Intel's big rival in this market is the One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) organisation, which has developed the XO laptop.
That machine has wi-fi onboard and was designed to work well in the challenging conditions found in many developing nations.
The original aim of the OLPC was to make a laptop that cost less then $100. The first finished design ended up costing about $188. The OLPC group hopes to hit its original aim on price with future versions.
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