Becta report on Open Source Software in Schools
From Schoolforge-UK
Becta today published their report entitled "Open Source Software in Schools", and their announcement is here. The Education Working Group, whose membership is drawn from Schoolforge-UK and the Open Source Consortium, issued this press release:
The Open Source Consortium and Schoolforge UK welcome the findings of BECTA's independent research into total cost of ownership (TCO) of ICT systems in schools.
Chair of the education working group, Ian Lynch said "There have been many TCO reports commissioned by companies with vested interests in proving their own case. This is a rare independent research study and carries significantly more weight than most as a result of its independence. BECTA's research shows that to sustain many goverment policies in ICT in education Open Source strategies are not optional but essential and the real decision for schools is not whether to adopt an open source strategy but how quickly and effectively the change can be managed."
WikiSysop 13:46, 13 May 2005 (BST)
More reactions: eGov Monitor has this: "Green Light for Open Source in Schools", while Silicon asserts "Still a strong case for Microsoft in schools and local government..." We believe that John Naughton will also be covering this in The Sunday Observer.
WikiSysop 19:33, 13 May 2005 (BST)
See John Naughton's weekly column in the Observer: "Lesson number one: get rid of Microsoft".
John Osborne 15:33, 15 May 2005 (BST)
At last! eGov Monitor publishes comments from the Education Working Group and Open Source Consortium
Mark Taylor 10:53, 16 May 2005 (BST)
BBC2 Working Lunch covered the Becta report in their programme today (Monday 16th May). Some recyled footage from their feature on Orwell High School in February. You can watch online (real media) till tomorrow . JohnOsborne
VnuNet has an article: "Open source slashes school IT budgets". The article is backed by a quote from Owen Lynch, Chief Executive at Becta: ""This report indicates that open source software can provide a cost-effective and efficient solution in schools if effectively deployed."
Richard Rothwell 14:44, 16 May 2005 (BST)
IT Week has a similar article, which however suggests that Becta want to do more research, and stresses the need for "an informed and experienced [open source] champion" to pan and manage implementation.
WikiSysop 10:49, 17 May 2005 (BST)
- Chris Puttick got his letter published in response to the IT Week article.
WikiSysop 13:23, 2 Jun 2005 (BST)
BBC News website has an article on the Becta report at last...
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/4558171.stm
John Osborne 13:02, 18 May 2005 (BST)
The Times Ed will include an article on OSS in schools in their OnLine ICT supplement. This appears twice a term. We hope it will be in the next issue.
John Osborne 23:36, 27 May 2005 (BST)
