From: "Peter Nunn" <pnunn@infoteq.com.au>
At the risk of starting a thread that runs for months, how do you overcome microsoft FUB in the education sector.
I only see one way to establish open education in a school. You have staff that believes in values, as creativity, curiosity and privacy. Staff motivated to put some effort in it. Then you can back them by providing support. Economical values, usability etc. shouldn't be at the heart of the discussion. They follow if the motivation is there. I give you an example why I believe the staff and their motivation is most important. My daughter has Apple instead of Windows. Caged farming compared to Windows. At least you can easily transfer data from/to a Windows system. Some of the iPad apps suck soo much that I would throw them out after an hour. It also prepares the next generation to send their data feed directly to the spies. Who would save or exchange data via USB stick? Apple makes it so much easier. Just use iTunes. Or Windows Live. Or Google.. whatever the product and the cloud of the day is. At Albert Park College the iPads are integrated part of all classes, every student has to buy one, and for students class 8 and above Mac computers are mandatory too. The staff seems to be enthusiastic to have modern devices to work with and a bunch of apps they consider useful and hip. There are free alternatives but I guess there is no way to counter that. Apple is seen as cool and it fits into the image of a "modern school". Well, we are living in the age where the image of a school is more important than education itself. Because we have a school market, parents shop around. We do not have schools simply to educate kids. I had endless hours, week by week, month by month, parents talking about "the best college for my child". It simply sucks. $1500 per student, 150 students per year, 7 years at the school makes it ca. 1.5 million dollars private spending on devices. Plus the IT budget in the school.. I use open source, my kids are familiar with it and they used some at home. But they do not stand a chance against a whole society brainwashed to believe in brands. Imagine another approach: Some Linux computers for teachers at the school, and the school starts with kids building their computer from a Raspberry Pi, and then install Linux on it, learn how to understand a computer works, how to make a case etc. The teachers in the class room can add Scratch, Audacity, GIMP etc. That's not too hard but needs some motivation. I made a garden bench last weekend. It does not matter too much whether it is a fancy one. The kids were enthusiastic, sawing and filing and drilling and screwing - and the finished furniture is the most loved item afterwards. Regards Peter