Orv and I talked about possibly having a track dedicated to Open Source in Education at the next SCALE.
Here are some initial thoughts, I hope this isn't too long.
Tim Frichtel
“Education Day” at SCALE 6x
* Key topics for Educators: * * Software that can be used in classroom and at home * * General purpose software (OO.org, Gimp, N|Vu, Inkscape, Scribus, Jashaka?) * * Educational software (GeoGebra, TuxMath, TuxType) * * “Web 2.0” -- blogging (Wordpress) and wikis (Mediawiki) * * Possibly programming – Logo, Python, PHP, Java etc.
* Software for school management * * Moodle - this is a no-brainer! Great tool, lots of success stories, solves a real need. * * SugarCRM - seemingly odd, but for private schools, managing donors, tuition etc is a logistical challenge * * Content Management System - Joomla, Plone etc - show how schools can have a great, up-to-date website with minimal web building skills * * Possibly OpenLDAP for managing authentication in large schools (possibly too narrowly technical)
* Benefits/Risks of Open Source * Successfully migrating to Open Source * How to get Support * * Books, websites, resources for _non-tech_ users
How to get Educators and Administrators to attend: * Position the presentations as ways to get great software into curriculum. I don't think putting the emphasis on free, freedom, or it isn't Microsoft/Apple will be a strong pull.
* Focus on how this is a great continuing-development opportunity for teachers/administrators. Schools actively look for ways to offer development to their staff. This is usually focused on things that get continuing ed credit, as these help credentialed teachers maintain their credentials, but the lack of college credit may not be a deal killer.
* Offer practical labs. Logistically, this would be challenging, but if the conference rooms are big enough, we should be able to use LTSP setups that will provide a great environment for working with Open Office, Blogging, etc. It might be possible to get HP (who has a big K-12 sell) and/or Dell, IMB etc to provide some equipment. Maybe Linspire, Novell or RedHat would be willing to chip in. They don't need to provide much. For instance, HP could provide thin clients and LCDs, with Linspire providing giveaway software. Failing that, we might be able to get used equipment resellers (who often market to schools) to loan us equipment. Old laptops can make decent thin clients, or can run Knoppix, livekiosk etc. If you look at Educational Computer shows like CUE (www.cue.org) the hands-on sessions for editing photos, web pages, blogging, podcasting etc are always packed.
* Provide practical "take-aways". Giving out an Open CD or a Ubuntu disk is nice, but if a short document with some tips on getting started and using the software in the classroom could be passed out as well, I think that would be a lot better. Maybe something like "10 Great Creative Writing projects with Blogs" or "Key features for creating research papers with Open Office Writer" or "Demonstrating Geometry fundamentals with GeoGebra".
* Get speakers who are educators and have success stories to tell. A bio that states an experienced teacher is using Linux | Moodle | GIMP etc is a much stronger draw than just talking about how great the software is and what _might_ be done with it. There are some great success stories, here are few I've heard of: - Riverdale High School in Oregon (http://k12ltsp.org/rhs_casestudy.html) - Indiana Schools: http://www.doe.state.in.us/INaccess/pdf/inACCESS_readiness-assessment.pdf - Vassalboro Community School in Maine http://www.desktoplinux.com/articles/AT8952848817.html