Mongolia’s Boy Genius

“How does a student from a country in which a third of the population is nomadic, living in round white felt tents … ace an M.I.T. course even though nothing like this is typically taught in Mongolian schools?” That’s a question posed by the NYT’s Laura Pappano in her article, The Boy Genius of Ulan Bator. There are a few answers: First, Battushig Myanganbayar is really smart. Second, his high school principal was the first Mongolian to graduate from M.I.T. And third, Mongolia is a lot more connected than you’d imagine. The migration to wireless technologies has enabled many countries to quickly overcome a lack of landline infrastructure and build up wireless networks (even most of the nomads in Mongolia have cellphones). That connectivity, coupled with the trend towards offering courses online, is spreading educational opportunities across the globe.

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