How it began
Plan Ceibal began in April 2007, when presidential decree 144/007 committed Uruguay to giving a laptop to every child and teacher in its public primary schools, along with training in how to use it. President Tabaré Vázquez was its main proponent, and the model came from Nicholas Negroponte's One Laptop per Child project. The stated aim was to close the gap between Uruguayans who had access to technology and those who did not.
A pilot started in May 2007 in Villa Cardal, a town of about 1,290 people in the department of Florida with a single school of 150 students. The laptops for the pilot were donated by One Laptop per Child. The name refers to the ceibo, a tree and flower typical of Uruguay, and also stands for Conectividad Educativa de Informática Básica para el Aprendizaje en Línea.
How it works
Each pupil and teacher received a personal laptop, first the OLPC XO-1, nicknamed the ceibalita. The early machines were white and green, ran the Linux-based Sugar learning software, and could see other laptops on the same local network so that children could work on a shared activity. The plan paired the hardware with free internet access at schools, teacher training, an educational portal, and a national monitoring and evaluation system used to guide later decisions.
How it spread
In October 2007 an open tender awarded 100,000 laptops and 200 servers, and by the end of that year every child and teacher in Florida had a machine. More than 175,000 laptops were delivered during 2008, covering the country apart from parts of Canelones and Montevideo. Coverage was complete in October 2009, reaching more than 350,000 children and 16,000 teachers.
The program then widened. Secondary and technical school students began receiving laptops in 2010, and nursery schools were added in 2011. In October 2013 President José Mujica handed over the one millionth computer at a school in Montevideo.
What changed first
Within about four years the plan had delivered some 450,000 laptops to all primary students and teachers and provided no-cost internet access across the country. A national survey in 2009 found that 94 percent of parents approved of the plan, and early evaluations reported better motivation among students and teachers.
Where it stands today
Ceibal continues as a national education technology agency based in Montevideo. Its work has moved beyond handing out devices. Ceibal en Inglés, piloted in 20 schools in 2012 with the British Council as partner, teaches English to primary classes through a remote teacher on video link working with the classroom teacher. The original XO laptops were replaced over time by tablets for younger children and conventional laptops.
