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Utilizing the XO Computer for Service Learning Opportunities: Collaborating with US Institutions and Paraguay Educa to Support XO Implementation in Wisconsin and Paraguay Abstract The One Laptop Per Child Project, created by the One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) Foundation, the program’s mission is to serve the worlds’ children by providing educational opportunities through the creation of low-cost, durable “XO” computers with programming specifically designed for collaborative learning. The development and support of the XO computer involve many professional skills and fields; including engineering and education. Currently 1.2 million XOs have been deployed globally, including approximately 15,000 in US schools. The completion of this mission is often difficult both in securing funding and attaining access to skilled professionals, because the vast majority of the XO deployments are located in developing countries with few resources. Another aspect of technology deployments in developing countries rarely discussed is that many of the financial donors, both government and foreign, are more willing to contribute money to purchase computers, while very few contribute funding to develop the infrastructure and skilled professionals that are essential to the success of any technology deployment, regardless of location. This is a substantial problem when considering that research shows the initial costs of computer deployments in developing countries consists of only 25-33% of the Total Cost of Ownership over the course of a five year period.[1] To address this problem, student organizations at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and Skidmore College in New York have formed a collaborative relationship that also includes Paraguay Educa, an NGO coordinating the country-wide XO deployment in Paraguay. This collaboration was formed to help provide the country-wide XO deployment in Paraguay and the small, experimental deployment in Wisconsin with the required technical support. The joint project strives to utilize the skills and resources found on university campuses in the US to benefit disadvantaged students both within the US and abroad, while providing quality educational opportunities for undergraduate and graduate learning and research. The research conducted to-date that seeks to estimate the Total Cost of Ownership in computer deployments considers but does not include the voluntary contributions made by students. This paper strives to exhibit and examine the value of student contributions from the academic perspective. Further research is planned to formally evaluate the value of the student contributions and their effects on reducing the TCO for XO deployments in developing countries. The first section of this paper will explore the evolution of the Wisconsin OLPC project and its repercussions in the foundation of the UW OLPC and OLPC Skidmore organizations. The second section consists of a literature review of the cost of implementing computers in the US and developing countries, focusing on the Total Cost of Ownership model. Finally, the third section will discuss the service learning projects and evaluate the student learning and the benefits of forming collaborative relationships both within the United States and internationally.

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Bernardoni, S., & Rodríguez Alcalá, M., & Rodriguez Alcala, M. (2009, June), Utilizing The Xo Computer For Undergraduate Research And Learning Opportunities Paper presented at 2009 Annual Conference & Exposition, Austin, Texas. 10.18260/1-2--5728