RE: [seul-edu] Open Source Applications Certification

[Glenn Iriye <Glenn.Iriye@epsb.ca>]

My school is Edmonton Public School District's site for students taking a
fourth or fifth year of high school.  Our students are between 17 and 20 (19
as of September 1 of the current school year).  Students upgrade their marks
for their academic courses, access courses to complete their diploma
requirements, access our career pathway courses (law enforcement/fire
preparation, CISCO Networking Academy, employabilities skills, Visual C++
Programming, Web Design, Animation, etc.).  Many of our students desire
experience and certification offered over and above the "regular" high
school curriculum.

Next year we have planned to augment our networking and computer courses by
adding Linux as a course offering.  Due to budgetary restraints of the
school and the fact that because this is included as part of a student's
"public education," there is little money to get the project off the ground.
To ensure cost efficiency and to ensure we can offer Linux, students are
being scheduled into the same block of time as students taking CISCO.  Our
two teachers involved believe this can be a successful approach and it
maximizes the possibility of enrolling students requesting that Linux be
added to their timetable.  We have been assuming that we could build student
skill levels so they could write a Linux+ or Linux networking test.  Because
this is still public education, we can prepare them for an external test,
but unless it is included in one of our courses, students are responsible
for any testing fee for such a credential.

We are long on plans and hopes, but short on material to make this plan an
actuality.  Any advice or resource you could provide would be greatly
appreciated.

Yours in learning,

Glenn Iriye
Assistant Principal
Centre High Campus
Edmonton Public Schools
(780) 918-7523 (cell phone)
(780) 917-8692 (direct office phone)
(780) 425-6753 (general reception)