Re: [seul-edu] Schoolforge ready for Prime Time?

["David M. Bucknell" <david@members.iteachnet.com>]

Dear Felipe,

Thanks for the thoughtful reply. 


> > *A mission statement
> 
> hmm...I am not a fan of these dreaded mission statements.
> I think a wee bit longer document, communicating the following issues:

You've made good points that could be part of a statement. Schools use them 
all the time as guides in curriculum/course/lesson/program development. They 
help in remembering the key points you agreed to work toward. They _are_ used 
in business settings (non-profits), too, but that doesn't take away from their 
utility. Nor would it be bad to act like an organization a little bit.
 
But you're right that more about how and why the coaltion functions might be a 
good idea. I suggest that that be on a "continued" page, such as /about.html .

Meanwhile, here's a rough, first try at what the statement could be:

<<Members of the Schoolforge Coaltion have the common goal of advocating the 
use of free and open source tools and curricula in education, and assisting 
them in their successful use and maintenance. We aim to make our efforts more 
effective and efficient by collaborating on and focusing our efforts, because 
we are convinced that free and open source solutions are right for education. 
The road to free and open source technology and curricula is the road to 
effective and sustainable school program development. At the Coalition sites 
below, visitors will find the information and tools they need to assist them 
at all stages of their journey.>>
 
Suggestions, alternatives?

> 
> > *An unordered, alphabetical list of links to coalition members' sites
> 
> I don't like the yahoo.com-like mode. There was something like this for
> Linux software, www.webwatcher.org, and it's dead now, with freshmeat
> taking the crown. But it's just my opinion. A better option would be a
> list of sites with a 1-paragraph description of the contents and some
> iconical information of what can be found inside (case studies, technical
> documents, support service, consulting (in the OSEF sense)...).
> 
> But I still can't see it fitting in the front page.

Good idea re the list. What do you think of Roger's start?

David



-- 
David M. Bucknell
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