__/ [thad01@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx] on Wednesday 07 December 2005 16:04
\__
> Roy Schestowitz <newsgroups@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
>>
>> I am also aware of at least one large school that is using Open Source for
>> teaching, Namely Moodle at Parrs Wood. Of course there are plenty more
>> such schools, but the desktop, the 'student-facing front', is the key
>> challenge, milestone or barrier (depending on how you look at it).
>
> Moodle rocks. I'm using it to develop free and paid tutorials to
> be hosted on my www.skilltrek.com web site. Feel free to check it
> out if you want to see what the moodle interface looks like. We
> don't have any real course content up yet, just an empty 'Intro
> to Linux' course. We should have the course finished some time
> early next year and will make it available for free as a loss leader
> for other services.
>
> I'd welcome suggestions on coursed you would like to see.
> We are considering Linux (intro and advance), LAMP, AJAX, and
> various prerequisite courses that feed into those (i.e. MySQL,
> Perl, PHP, JavaScript, XML ...).
>
> The idea is to provide free introductory level and self paced
> courses, but perhaps charge for advance courses that include
> consultation with a university instructor, awarding of
> certifications, etc. We would also sell consulting services
> to develop custom courseware for businesses. OSHA, ISO9000,
> and Six Sigma requirements are driving an increasing need for
> business to provide ongoing training to their employees. Web
> based tools like moodle are uniquely suited to this, allowing
> courses to be delivered in an automated, self-paced format
> that minimizes business down-time (you don't need to pull
> the entire workforce into an auditorium and show them a bunch
> of powerpoint slides).
>
> And of course the opportunities for Moodle within traditional
> schools is boundless. It cannot replace teachers (nor should
> it), but it provides a wonderful tool for students to access
> homework and course material when outside the classroom.
>
> Cheers,
>
> Thad
Thanks, Thad. I'll have a look.
I saw a demonstration of Moodle in action as it was the centrepoint of our
last LUG meeting. It is said to be accepted with open arms in the States,
but here in England, it's probably in the 'case study' stage. The more
exposure it gets, the quicker it will spread. Look at Firefox and WordPress
where use and users alone can help spread the word.
Good luck with your ventures,
Roy
--
Roy S. Schestowitz | "On the eighth day, God created UNIX"
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