Technology and Child Development: Evidence from the One Laptop per Child Program

Julian Cristia (), Pablo Ibarraran (), Santiago Cueto, Ana Santiago () and Eugenio Severín ()
Additional contact information
Ana Santiago: Inter-American Development Bank
Eugenio Severín: Inter-American Development Bank

No 6401, IZA Discussion Papers from Institute of Labor Economics (IZA)

Abstract: Although many countries are aggressively implementing the One Laptop per Child (OLPC) program, there is a lack of empirical evidence on its effects. This paper presents the impact of the first large-scale randomized evaluation of the OLPC program, using data collected after 15 months of implementation in 319 primary schools in rural Peru. The results indicate that the program increased the ratio of computers per student from 0.12 to 1.18 in treatment schools. This expansion in access translated into substantial increases in use both at school and at home. No evidence is found of effects on enrollment and test scores in Math and Language. Some positive effects are found, however, in general cognitive skills as measured by Raven's Progressive Matrices, a verbal fluency test and a Coding test.

Keywords: education; technology; experiments (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: C93 I21 I28 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 42 pages
Date: 2012-03
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-lab
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (63)

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Related works:
Journal Article: Technology and Child Development: Evidence from the One Laptop per Child Program (2017)
Working Paper: Technology and Child Development: Evidence from the One Laptop per Child Program (2012)
Working Paper: Technology and Child Development: Evidence from the One Laptop per Child Program (2012)
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