open source software for education (mel mcintyre) open app

8/9/2019 Open Source Software for Education (Mel McIntyre) Open App

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Open SourceOpen SourceSoftwareSoftware

forforEducationEducation

The 4C Initiative - increasingdigital content capacity for

education

Mel [email protected]


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Open Source Software

OSS

Free and Open Source SoftwareFOSS

Free/Libre Open Source Software FLOSS


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Key messageOpen Source can help to increase digital content capacity

for education on a global scale

There are potential benefits

OSS and Open Commons go handin hand in making both the contentand the delivery mechanismavailable.

Better value from use of opensource solutions with zero licensecost allowing you to focus budgetson other areas

Reduced license administration and

ease of updating software The models of community and

participation are already proven andcome naturally to the educationsector.

The participative and interactive

nature of available applications areattractive to our young people

There are barriers to overcome

All IT needs support and the

education sector has limited budget

Limited support from local supplier

sector due to poor business model

Education has complex

requirements administration,

curriculum, infrastructure difficult

to find a focus

Poor understanding of OSS coupled

with a 'procurement/tendering'

mentality


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Software just like any other but free of license costs Software that comes with a license that provides the user

with certain freedoms

freedom to use for any purpose, freedom to copy the software, freedomto view and modify the source code, freedom re-distribute modified

versions

Open Source Software comes in many varieties

Infrastructure Linux Operating System email firewalls ContentManagement Edubuntu desktop

Administration Moodle Course Management Centre SIS (Studentinformation) Schooltool (Scheduling)

Applications OpenOffice Gcompris Qcad - Scribus

Systems software Directories(OpenLDAP) Statistics(AWStats) -Monitoring(Nagios)

What is Open Source Software


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How does this work

Maybe 70% of software available was notwritten by traditional software companies . .

people not in the business of selling software

Government, Universities, Communityprojects, Google Summer of Code, capableindividuals all release software for others to useand improve

New business models centred on service andsupport rather than licensed intellectual

property are rapidly evolving


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A new force The undeniablemarket trend toward Open Source

Forrester report on Open Source in Europe (Dec 2005) reports that

72% of firms claim lower TCO & lower acquisition costs

40% of European companies already use some sort of open source solution(56% in USA). 45% in mission critical areas (55% in USA)

IDC/Forfas report July 2006

WW Software revenue (Linux/OSS) CAGR % of 48% for applications and 34%for application development and deployment software.

Predicted 2009 WW revenue of almost $17bn with at least the same in servicesrevenue.

CIO Insight reports that

81% of companies have deployed or are considering deploying open sourceapplications;

72% plan to expand its use

65% say open source has sparked innovation within their IT


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Possible Benefits

Minimises vendor lock-in and proprietary systems Avoiding vendors branding, product release and revenue generation

requirements

Minimises capital expenditure and ongoing costs

no upfront royalty for license to use

No annual royalties for user seats etc.

More control of overall IT strategy

Open source projects tend to use standards for interoperability

Open Source projects allow organisations to influence the roadmap

Reduces risk of obsolescence

Open Source promotes innovation & ensures customisation

Through availability of source code

Through the free access to community ideas and modification

Quicker to add features


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More specifically . .

Avoid being product/brand specific MS Office for ECDL/ICDL could be OpenOffice

Web CT for course management could be Moodle,Sakai, Dokios . .

Photoshop and Illustrator for graphics could be Gimpand Inkscape

ArcGIS for Geography could be Qgis

SPSS for Statistics could be R Project AutoCAD for CAD could be Qcad


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Enabling an e-Learning culture

The adoption of Open Source systems and models is conducive tothe creation of an effective e-Learning culture and participativearchitecture.

Modern Open Source idioms

Collaboration/Participation and inclusiveness

Innovation and building on the work of others

Openness and sharing

Flexibility and responsiveness

The collaborative/community model is proven to work and is familiarto students.

Children and teenagers are exposed to the internet andsocial/community websites from an early age. They like andparticipate in these sites. The community model can be emulated

and harnessed in an educational context.


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Risks of not using Open Source

From an education perspective there are risks associated with not adoptingOpen Source which can be summarised by the phrase avoid lifetime vendorlock-in for students

This lock-in is real and happens when students and teachers associate ICTusage and consumption only with a particular vendor.

The focus is on a vendor specific application rather than essential and moregeneric ICT skills.

Ideally the use of Open Source technologies would encourage students to

Have a critical point of view regarding different software solutions

Understand the differences between open and proprietary solutions Become active contributors to an open source project or tool

Adapted from EU Study on the Economic Impact of Open Source on Innovationand competitiveness of the ICT Sector in the EU. Rishab Ghosh, Nov 2006


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Barriers to using OSS

Access to affordable support onsite configuration, problem solving, usage

Schools often do not have budget for any support OSS or proprietary

There is generally less support in the business space for OSS

Software often covered under capital budget consulting support oftenexpense

Local expertise most successes seem to built on the commitment of individualsrather than commitment from the 'system' -

Too much software how to choose what is useful

Similar issue to using 'free demonstration' versions of proprietaryapplications - it takes time and commitment to evaluate

The benefit over 'demonstration ' software is that you can keep the OSSsoftware should it fit your need

No vendor push nobody selling, limited marketing collateral, the business modelhas not developed well in the education space (maybe too difficult to define

Parents expectations OpenOffice versus MS Office


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Open Source project: Edubuntu

Operating system designed for schools

Designed for fast and easy setup without technical expertise

Delivers the effective Linux Terminal Server Project (LTSP)

allows you to boot thin clients from an Edubuntu LTSP server.

lowers hardware costs by enabling the use of older machines as thin clients, as well asreduced administration overhead by having only to install and maintain the software on theserver.

Applications

Primary schools:

Early learning environment (Gcompris)

Educational games and activities from Tux4Kids and KDEEdu projects

Secondary schools:

full office suite, plus applications for instant messaging, graphics, sound and video.

Access to thousands of other high quality opensource programs at no cost.


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Open Source project: Moodle

Moodle is a free software e-learning platform and Course ManagementSystem (CMS)

Moodle is designed to help educators create online courses with

opportunities for rich interaction. Its open source license and modulardesign means that many people can develop additional functionality, anddevelopment is undertaken by a globally diffuse network of commercialand non-commercial users, spearheaded by the Moodle company basedin Perth, Western Australia.

Moodle: Modular Object-Oriented Dynamic Learning Environment is a

free and open-source e-learning software platform, also known as aCourse Management System, Learning Management System, or VirtualLearning Environment. It has a significant user base with 45,721registered and verified sites, containing 32 million users in 3 millioncourses (as of January, 2010).[3]

Moodle is designed to help educators create online courses with a focus

on interaction and collaborative construction of content.


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Open Source project: OpenOffice

Free software office suite of products used extensively throughout the world

Includes functionality such as word processor, spreadsheet, multi-mediapresentations, database and others.

Provides a familiar look and feel and is easy to use

Is compatible with other major office suites

It has a significant user base and is available in 80 languages

It provides all the necessary functionality for teaching IT skills and has ECDL/ICDLapproved courseware available from Blackrock Publishing.


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What can you do . .

Teacher support organisations could promote best ofbreed for some categories course management,office, administration . . .

Could interact with developer community

Most applications supported on Windows and Macso not necessary to learn Linux . . try one at a time

No license costs means educators can collaborate

between organisations without commercialbarriers . . work with other schools or institutions


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Case studieshttp://opensourceschools.org.uk/case-studies.html

Low cost ICT across the curriculum Tralee Ireland

Course Management with Moodle at Perins

Social networking with Elgg at Alton Convent

Cost effective curriculum delivery at SkegnessGrammar

Mount Tamar Special School - whole schoolcurriculum

Painting for Infants at Holmfirth Primary


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Web resources

http://www.opensourcewindows.org/

http://www.freesoftwareforstudents.org.uk/

http://opensourceschools.org.uk/

http://www.k12opensource.org/

http://www.edubuntu.org/

http://www.osalt.com/

Magazines

Ubuntu

Linux Format

Linux Journal

Linux Magazine
http://www.opensourcewindows.org/http://www.freesoftwareforstudents.org.uk/http://opensourceschools.org.uk/http://www.k12opensource.org/http://www.edubuntu.org/http://www.edubuntu.org/http://www.k12opensource.org/http://opensourceschools.org.uk/http://www.freesoftwareforstudents.org.uk/http://www.opensourcewindows.org/


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OpenForum Europe OFE

We are a not-for-profit, independent organisation launched in March 2002 toaccelerate, broaden and strengthen the use of Open Source Software (OSS)

in business and government. OFE is supported by major IT suppliers andworks closely with the European Commission and National Governments,both direct and via National Associates.

What we do!

OFE promotes informed debate on the pluses and minuses of Open Source

and Open Standards. We make input on European and National IT policy,hold bi-annual briefings with EU Commission organisations, speak atconferences and generally promote awareness of the issues and activities ofOSS

Mel McIntyre

Non executive director of OFE since 2005 and founder and chair of an OFEpartner in Ireland

Founder and Managing Director of OpenApp, a software development andsupport company since 2002 focusing of OSS solutions in business, healthand education sectors.

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