A computer for every student in Argentina: Exploring political, logistical and pedagogical successes and challenges in Conectar Igualdad

ConectarIgualdad (CI) is a 1:1 initiative of the Argentine government that is distributing 3 million netbooks to all secondary students, making it the most extensive eLearning program in the world. Based on a qualitative methodological design, we interviewed national officials, provincial authorities, school principals, teachers and students in five provinces. Given the complexity of the political, logistical and pedagogical design of the program we focused on the relations between different stakeholders at the federal level and between the national and provincial authorities. Also, in order to analyze the enactment of technologies in schools we incorporated a quasi-ethnographic approach by incorporating class observations in different provinces. The program has been overall well received, but we also perceived some implementation challenges that are related with lack of sponsorship and appropriation at the local levels, while we continue to explore challenges that are linked to the difficulties of coordination at the federal level.