1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:02,400 in 1974. 2 00:00:02,400 --> 00:00:06,600 Well, while computers have been compulsory in many Australian 3 00:00:06,600 --> 00:00:09,400 schools, for others, it remains a luxury. 4 00:00:09,400 --> 00:00:11,440 None more so than in the country's 5 00:00:11,440 --> 00:00:13,680 remote indigenous communities. 6 00:00:13,680 --> 00:00:16,080 But a charity started in the United States 7 00:00:16,080 --> 00:00:17,400 wants to change that. 8 00:00:17,400 --> 00:00:20,520 And it's begun a campaign to equip every child living 9 00:00:20,520 --> 00:00:22,680 in these communities with a laptop, 10 00:00:22,680 --> 00:00:25,960 starting at Galiwinku on the Northern Territory's Arnhem 11 00:00:25,960 --> 00:00:26,480 Land coast. 12 00:00:26,920 --> 00:00:29,960 It may be the world wide web, but for these kids, 13 00:00:29,960 --> 00:00:32,720 internet at home has remained a distant dream. 14 00:00:32,720 --> 00:00:35,320 That is, until now. 15 00:00:35,320 --> 00:00:37,960 The One Laptop Per Child charity has set itself 16 00:00:37,960 --> 00:00:39,640 the mission of providing children 17 00:00:39,640 --> 00:00:42,520 like these at Shepherdson College with what they say 18 00:00:42,520 --> 00:00:46,160 is a basic right for children living in this day and age. 19 00:00:46,160 --> 00:00:49,440 To engage children, we need something that's interactive, 20 00:00:49,440 --> 00:00:52,120 something that allows teachers in these classrooms 21 00:00:52,120 --> 00:00:55,520 to help reach into each child's potential. 22 00:00:55,520 --> 00:00:59,120 The organization has its roots at the prestigious Massachusetts 23 00:00:59,120 --> 00:01:01,080 Institute of Technology. 24 00:01:01,080 --> 00:01:02,800 A group of academics there wanted 25 00:01:02,800 --> 00:01:05,720 to distribute an easy-to-use laptop to children 26 00:01:05,720 --> 00:01:08,680 in developing countries and remote areas. 27 00:01:08,680 --> 00:01:10,280 And it's already given $2 million 28 00:01:10,280 --> 00:01:12,520 to children across the globe. 29 00:01:12,520 --> 00:01:14,000 The group's now setting its sights 30 00:01:14,000 --> 00:01:17,040 on Australia's remote indigenous communities. 31 00:01:17,040 --> 00:01:18,760 The principal of Shepherdson says 32 00:01:19,080 --> 00:01:23,160 When you see some of the conditions our people live in, 33 00:01:23,160 --> 00:01:26,120 it's quite often 15, 20 in a house, 34 00:01:26,120 --> 00:01:29,160 in a three to four bedroom house, so it's very, very crowded. 35 00:01:29,160 --> 00:01:31,400 The computer's designed so that those children 36 00:01:31,400 --> 00:01:34,680 with the most basic English skills can use them. 37 00:01:34,680 --> 00:01:37,160 And the beauty of this design, of this laptop, 38 00:01:37,160 --> 00:01:39,560 is that it's all icon-based. 39 00:01:39,560 --> 00:01:42,200 And only when you roll over the icons 40 00:01:42,200 --> 00:01:44,760 can you see what's going on in the computer. 41 00:01:44,760 --> 00:01:46,720 It's all icon-based. 42 00:01:46,720 --> 00:01:49,200 And only when you roll over the icons 43 00:01:49,200 --> 00:01:52,760 do you have interactions with English or another language. 44 00:01:52,760 --> 00:01:56,040 They're also made to help keep local languages alive. 45 00:01:56,040 --> 00:01:58,040 One of the visions for us in the future 46 00:01:58,040 --> 00:02:02,000 is to develop some programs around the Yolngu culture. 47 00:02:02,000 --> 00:02:03,880 And that will give us real connectedness 48 00:02:03,880 --> 00:02:07,520 to student learning, to be able to transfer Yolngu culture 49 00:02:07,520 --> 00:02:10,320 into Western culture or Western ways. 50 00:02:10,320 --> 00:02:13,440 And the so-called green machines are built to last. 51 00:02:13,440 --> 00:02:15,960 The laptop has been designed by those at MIT 52 00:02:15,960 --> 00:02:17,800 with harsh conditions in mind. 53 00:02:17,800 --> 00:02:20,720 It's been tested to withstand humidity, dust and heat. 54 00:02:20,720 --> 00:02:23,440 It's even got a screen that can be read in direct sunlight 55 00:02:23,440 --> 00:02:26,000 for those who attend school outside. 56 00:02:26,000 --> 00:02:28,960 5,000 laptops should be rolled out to communities 57 00:02:28,960 --> 00:02:30,920 throughout the Northern Territory, Queensland 58 00:02:30,920 --> 00:02:33,720 and Western Australia in the next six months. 59 00:02:33,720 --> 00:02:36,520 And they ultimately want to give 400,000 of them 60 00:02:36,520 --> 00:02:38,520 to kids across the country. 61 00:02:38,520 --> 00:02:41,160 For these kids, their gift has already arrived. 62 00:02:41,760 --> 00:02:46,160 I'm going to make some pictures in my game. 63 00:02:46,160 --> 00:02:48,960 I'm going to do pen and pictures. 64 00:02:48,960 --> 00:02:51,680 A gateway to the future, but also an instrument 65 00:02:51,680 --> 00:02:53,840 that will help keep tradition alive. 66 00:02:53,840 --> 00:02:56,480 In Galiwinku, Emma Cook, World News Australia.