The Wales-Wide Web

The Observer | Business | The Networker: John Naughton:

Interesting reactions to the long awaited release of the British Education Technology Association (BECTA) report on Open Source software in schools. In their press release BECATA say:

"This report indicates that open source software can provide a cost-effective and efficient solution in schools if effectively deployed. Becta believes that software used in schools should be of a high quality and adhere to open standards, enabling compatibility and interoperability between products".

Got the expected thumbs up from the OSS community and the predictable broadside from the big software corporations led as usual by Microsoft - see this commentary for example.

The UK government seems conspicuous by its silence on the issue. I can't see Labour endorsing anything like this - its too much in bed with the big companies.

the major plus of the report is that it has widened the debate. Open Source is no longer a subject just for nerds. It is certainly being discussed by school based ICt coordinators. To get a flavour of the debate see the TES discussion list - wittily called the staffroom (ho,ho).

One prevalent issue in these discussions is whether or not schools have sufficient technical support - or technical staff with adequate skills to run Open Source networks.

Extended text for this entry:

Take the following comment:

"Because if someone switches thier network to linux, SunOS etc... then what the hell does the company do if that person then decides to leave? LG mentioned that she runs a network on her own down at Dover, what happens to the school if she moves on? After all she seems to be very talented at what she does and is likely to be picked up sooner rather than later by another organisation. What does the school do if she bails?

Meanwhile John Naughton also picked up this issue in his excellent weekly Observer Column 'The networker'.

"Most British schools are hooked on networks that consist of hundreds of PCs running various flavours of the Windows operating system and Microsoft Office software. Now it is perfectly possible to run an effective Windows-based network, just as it is possible to dig your garden using a teaspoon - provided you employ a hundred gardeners to do the work.

The problem is that keeping such a network up and running requires a great deal of technical support - the equivalent of three full-time trained technicians for an average secondary school. And upgrading the system to keep track of changes in Microsoft's operating systems is expensive. Basically it boils down to throwing out a third of your computers every three years and buying new machines that can run the latest version of Windows."

Whilst John is right, this still begs the issue of whether there is the technical support to switch to OSS.

I am not sure what the real issue is (but would very much like to know the answer). Is it:

a) That technicians have been trained for Windows and it would take a lot of time and effort for them to learn Linux/
b) That technicians are familiar with Windows and do not want to learn anything new?
c) That the technical support issue to a smokescreen or excuse to stick with Microsoft?

Continuing on with the technical skills issue. At least in the UK, technicians are usually either self taught, attend vendor or technical college courses or have undergone a three year computer studies degree. Do we need more short courses in OSS. Should we have a specific track at degree level in OSS. Or is there little specific about OSS that cannot be included in present provision.

Would be interested in hearing other peoples comments