Re: [school-discuss] my puzzle about OSS in education

[Rob Rittenhouse <rob@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

> Quoting Greg Farrell <erac_greg@xxxxxxxxx>:
>
>
> > Does anyone who's switched to OSS applications, like
> > the ones Marilyn's listed here, have any available
> > statistics that evaluate student's performance before
> > and after the switch?  What were the metrics used?
> >
> > I'm trying to get a sense of learning content value,
> > so anything along these lines would be a help
> >
> > Greg Farrell

The big question would be whether or not learning with computers helps. 
I don't see that there would necessarily be much difference between OSS 
and proprietary software in this area (do you actually learn 
significantly more or less by using the Gimp vs Photoshop? OpenOffice vs 
MS Office? TuxType vs Mavis Beacon?)

Where OSS might help is in affordability and manageability of computing. 
If the choice is Gimp vs something we can't afford, OpenOffice vs 
something we can't afford TuxType vs something we can't afford the 
equation changes. Plus with OSS you can give the students the 
applications you are teaching with. What are the benefits in giving the 
students the software to use at home?

Try flipping the question: what are the real advantages of using 
proprietary software?

--
Rob Rittenhouse