Re: [edu-eu] Re: [edu-team] education activity flyer / arguments + information

[Yannis Corovesis]

Hello, I made a run:

Both Internet and Free software (IFS) are significant phenomena of
contemporary Society
that require corresponding responses from our Education system. The
latter needs
to evolve to a state that is able to synchronize with such on-going events.

Internet and Free Software (IFS) are two platforms with unique
characteristics.
In addition to being solutions to problems set by Science and Technology
they constitute an outstanding case where Science is applied to production
giving rise to a new paradigm called "Peered Production".

Y. Benkler in his seminal paper "Coase's Penguin" shows the paradigm to
extend beyond the area of software to that of content production too.
Hence the relevance to Education is established.

How are the needed educational content and actors going to be created ?
The means of self-application is the only candidate since the speed of
evolution in tools
and methods of IFS do not allow any other option from the classic system.

Self-application means IFS became both the object as well as the subject
of Education.
IFS resemble Science in the way results are produced and knowledge gets
communicated. So it seems appropriate to deploy the tools and methods of
IFS in order to reproduce the "experiment" of IFS.


Yannis Corovesis

Bjoern Schiessle wrote:
> Hello Thomas,
>
> Thomas Jensch <address@hidden> writes:
>   
>> Beside the general facts of why Free Software is better: Are there any
>> education specific arguments?
>>     
>
> One argument I see is that schools should not only teach technical
> skills but also social skills. In traditional areas this can mean
> something like "be nice to each other", playing together, work together
> in teams, help each other, waste separation, etc.
>
> Free Software encourage and allow pupils to do this things in areas
> where computers are involved while non-Free Software teach them not to
> help each other ("because sharing software is bad"), don't be nice to
> each other (because you can't give a copy to your friends), don't work
> together in a team, etc.
>
> Another argument is that Free Software allows real learning. Pupils can
> discover how it works and what it does internally. They can dive into
> the software as deep as they want, no artificial borders. 
> I like to compare the use of non-Free Software in the IT course with a
> math course where you don't learn math skills but only how to use a
> electronic calculator. In this case pupils wouldn't learn math but only
> how to use an electronic device. The same is true for the use of
> non-Free Software. With non-Free Software pupils only learn how to use a
> black box but no real understanding and skills related to IT.
>
> best wishes,
> Björn
>
>   
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