Teaching tech to tots: The use of Linux and open source in pre-schools

by David M Williams

Monday, 04 August 2008

Page 1 of 3 ! What started as wondering how to contribute to my 5 year old son’s pre-school lead to the discovery of some absolutely terrific open source software that really aids the educational process. Here’s why even in this Microsoft world Linux is the best platform for early childhood education. I doubt my pre-school is any different to most others; it has two floors with two simultaneous classes that are divided by age. Despite the obvious talent and dedication of the teachers it is clear the school could do with more resources. I’m sure this echoes the situation of schools worldwide. There is one computer available, despite a daily attendance of approximately 40 children. I hadn’t considered the school’s computer until one day the teacher commented to me how they had used it that day and how clever she thought my son was because he had been helping the other children, let alone the teachers themselves. Ok, I’m boasting a bit about the feedback, but I am sure most all iTWire readers have a similar situation – being tech-savvy people, it stands to reason our offspring take an interest in computing and have access to technology at home. I took an interest and asked about the school computer – how many they had (one – donated by one of the teachers), what sort of software they used (Windows ’98 with some old Macromedia Director based games), the quality of the equipment (CRT monitor, ball mouse, and generally old) and if there were any other things they were interested in doing. The school had a large litany of wants and desires. A printer would be useful. A second computer would greatly help with allowing children an opportunity to use the computer. A third computer would help even more, with two on one floor and one on the other. They felt they probably could not accommodate more computers than that due to lack of space. That said, LCD monitors would give some desk space back. I surmised a small network could also raise opportunities for collaboration between children. Besides the physical concerns, better software was needed to help with a wider range of educational objectives especially literacy and numerical applications. I set off on a quest to do what I could to help the school. Getting computers was not so difficult due to businesses writing older equipment off – they weren’t modern but were better than what the school had. What was more complex was dealing with the software issue. Microsoft Windows has a foothold in the minds of many people. It’s well known, it’s established, and it’s familiar. Yet, it’s also proprietary. It costs money to buy a license for Microsoft Windows. The computers I had been given did not come with an OEM license or any form of license. A volume license key was used which the company retained. If I wanted to give the school Microsoft Windows then someone would also need to donate or pay for licenses. Yet, there was another option: Ubuntu Linux, rapidly becoming the best known Linux distribution available and which specifically has an educational add-on called Edubuntu. CONTINUED << First page <   1 2 3 Next page > Last page - Post your comment >>

 

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