Re: [Fsfe-uk] Fsfe-uk] Essex laptop for pupils plans

[ian]

On Tue, 2004-03-16 at 10:32, address@hidden wrote:
> I am a school ICT coordinator and am considering ways of extending
> internet access to pupils who do not have it at home. How much does it
> cost, a laptop with open source software? I had never really
> considered it. I already provide pupils with open office CDs. When I
> buy laptops or PCs for school or anywhere else I am generally told
> that they cannot be sold without an operating system ie the current
> version of MS Windows....
> Margaret Derrington

It is indeed difficult to buy laptops without WIndows on them but it is
not difficult to buy PCs. We will build PCS to custom spec with
GNU/Linux on them or supply laptops dual boot. Well PCs dual boot too.
Point is with laptops, we get them supplied with Windows so there is no
cost advantage in taking it off. We probably could source and build
laptops but its economically not really worth it.

As for Essex, this is not really a new initiative. A number of schools
have gone down the laptop for pupils route and it has failed every time
on the fact that you will never get children with both parent unemplyed
buying laptops. In fact the whole concept of inducing parents into "tax
relief" schemes is reinforcing the technological divide. The
E-foundations that were set up to do this have generally fallen foul of
the Inland Revenue. It would be a far more attainable strategy to
refurbish machines and install free software so as all the basic
productivity tools are available and give such machines to any pupil on
free meals entirely free. If people want the latest stuff they can buy
it themselves, all we are doing is ensuring basic entitlement. If we
start giving out expensive laptops and tablet PCs, every one will want
one - we are not here to keep chasing technological rainbows, but to
educate children so let's start with basic entitlement. Also laptops are
more expensive to buy than desktops and why do you want kids carrying
laptops about? Put lots of thin clients everywhere so there is unlimited
network (secure) access throughout the school and get pupils to have a
desktop at home. Have you seen the state textbooks get into carrying
them between home and school? With networking its really not necessary
to carry your technology around with you.

I have been preaching this quite a lot on my travels and most sensible
schools realise that its going to be a cold day in hell before even a
significant minority let alone all kids are walking round with Windows
based computer technology.
> 
> Dear all,
> 
> anyone interested to follow this up and to find out more details?
> 
>  http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/3514384.stm
> 
> >From the article:
> 
>  New drive to give pupils laptops
> [...]
>  Essex is the latest education authority to urge parents to make
>  tax-deductible contributions to a charity so schoolchildren can have
>  laptops.
> [...]
>  The Anytime, Anywhere Learning initiative - pioneered by software company
>  Microsoft - involves the setting up of a charitable "e-learning foundation". 
> [...]
>  The authority hopes shortly to announce major sponsorship by a computer
>  firm. 
> [...]
> 
> This might be a good time to approach them and to find out, if this is yet
> just another marketing trick to get kids into using proprietary software. We
> could surely offer them CDs with OpenOffice and a free operating system for
> the laptops. :-)
> 
> Any volunteer?
> 
> Thanks,
> Marc
> 
> 
> _______________________________________________
> Fsfe-uk mailing list
> address@hidden
> http://mail.gnu.org/mailman/listinfo/fsfe-uk
-- 
ian <address@hidden>