Open Source and TESOL John Allan Abu Dhabi Men’s College Higher Colleges of Technology United Arab Emirates

Handout Open Source Day at ADMC Faculty and students presented Many road blocks to implementation

Open Source Day at ADMC

Faculty and students presented

Many road blocks to implementation

Open Source Defined Not freeware Not shareware programming code is unlocked GNU general public licensing most freely available via Internet some offer maintenance contracts

Not freeware

Not shareware

programming code is unlocked

GNU general public licensing

most freely available via Internet

some offer maintenance contracts

Open Source Movement software should be free and that developers cooperate to create more imaginative software in an environment of freedom movement has evolved into a major player in the software industry Sun, IBM, Oracle, Intel, Disney, Macromedia & NASA

software should be free and that developers cooperate to create more imaginative software in an environment of freedom

movement has evolved into a major player in the software industry

Sun, IBM, Oracle, Intel, Disney, Macromedia & NASA

Hackers Open Source was closely linked to the hacker culture in the nineties This affiliation is dissipating due to large organizations and governments’ acceptance of Open Source solutions Open Source software has spread to every discipline imaginable –why not TESOL?

Open Source was closely linked to the hacker culture in the nineties

This affiliation is dissipating due to large organizations and governments’ acceptance of Open Source solutions

Open Source software has spread to every discipline imaginable –why not TESOL?

Tools Desktop operating systems web browser Messaging file transfer protocol games word processor spreadsheet audio/video player scheduler presentation calculator parallels the established software offered by traditional software companies

operating systems

web browser

Messaging

file transfer protocol

games

word processor

spreadsheet

audio/video player

scheduler

presentation

calculator

parallels the established software offered by traditional software companies

Tools Creative audio editor and recorder video digitizer and editor word processor spreadsheet graphics editor (both vector and raster) HTML editor Presentation learning management systems

audio editor and recorder

video digitizer and editor

word processor

spreadsheet

graphics editor (both vector and raster)

HTML editor

Presentation

learning management systems

Tools Other learning management system video conferencing HTML editor Windows “emulator” network clients virtual Network Computing

learning management system

video conferencing

HTML editor

Windows “emulator”

network clients

virtual Network Computing

Open Source Tools Operating system Linux Suse, Red Hat, Mandrake

Operating system

Linux

Suse, Red Hat, Mandrake

Open Source Tools learning management system Moodle

learning management system

Moodle

Open Source & TESOL few Open Source CALL programs available could not locate one fully dedicated to TESOL will change as the Open Source movement spreads and a few enthusiastic educators lead the way

few Open Source CALL programs available

could not locate one fully dedicated to TESOL

will change as the Open Source movement spreads and a few enthusiastic educators lead the way

Open Source & TESOL John Higgins, self-taught programmer Jackass Verbalist Switch Doubleup FindWord Sequitir Dropin Eclipse MarkUp Sortset

John Higgins, self-taught programmer

Jackass

Verbalist

Switch

Doubleup

FindWord

Sequitir

Dropin

Eclipse

MarkUp

Sortset

Open Source & TESOL altruistic creations were eventually emulated or bought by companies such as WIDA & sold programs authored in basements of curious TESOL educators, who married the practical TESOL classroom needs with the new technology offered by fundamental computer languages of the period BASIC, BBC BASIC and LOGO were used to produce programs which challenged the student to think about the language in ways that simulated realia or classroom activities.

altruistic creations were eventually emulated or bought by companies such as WIDA & sold

programs authored in basements of curious TESOL educators, who married the practical TESOL classroom needs with the new technology offered by fundamental computer languages of the period

BASIC, BBC BASIC and LOGO were used to produce programs which challenged the student to think about the language in ways that simulated realia or classroom activities.

Open Source & TESOL a parallel situation exists inquisitive people sharing and building upon each others’ code the Internet intensifies the potential of this phenomenon the promise of groups of hobbyist developers collaborating to create effective and diverse programs for a variety of platforms is unlimited These platforms can manifest themselves as web based, CD or DVD based or video examples found on the web produced by part-time developers during the nineties as a result of the Macromedia Shockwave and Flash programs hundreds of freely available programs of varying qualities and complexities surfaced through personal and institutional websites Jim Duber’s website, “Cutting Edge CALL Demos.” Duber locates an emerging technology and creates a CALL program or exercise with it to provide an example of the technology’s potential

a parallel situation exists

inquisitive people sharing and building upon each others’ code

the Internet intensifies the potential of this phenomenon

the promise of groups of hobbyist developers collaborating to create effective and diverse programs for a variety of platforms is unlimited

These platforms can manifest themselves as web based, CD or DVD based or video

examples found on the web produced by part-time developers during the nineties as a result of the Macromedia Shockwave and Flash programs

hundreds of freely available programs of varying qualities and complexities surfaced through personal and institutional websites

Jim Duber’s website, “Cutting Edge CALL Demos.” Duber locates an emerging technology and creates a CALL program or exercise with it to provide an example of the technology’s potential

Open Source & TESOL Today two advantages for the TESOL profession Administrative- Costs for software are negligible, greatly reduced software will allow organization to distribute budgets on other areas of education. Institutions, schools and independent learning centres can provide computers with operating systems, office suites, email clients, internet browsers, and other standard software at extremely low rate. inventive activities using standard software have been formalized and published on websites such as Dave’s ESL Café or have been published in print such as the New Ways Series (Boswood, 1997) from TESOL, We Teach technology (Kearsley, 1992) and the Resource Books For Teachers (Hardisty, 1989). These activity resources have been used for the past decade with mainstream office, audio, video and graphical applications. There is no adaptation necessary of these activities to Open Source software.

two advantages for the TESOL profession

Administrative- Costs for software are negligible, greatly reduced software will allow organization to distribute budgets on other areas of education. Institutions, schools and independent learning centres can provide computers with operating systems, office suites, email clients, internet browsers, and other standard software at extremely low rate.

inventive activities using standard software have been formalized and published on websites such as Dave’s ESL Café or have been published in print such as the New Ways Series (Boswood, 1997) from TESOL, We Teach technology (Kearsley, 1992) and the Resource Books For Teachers (Hardisty, 1989). These activity resources have been used for the past decade with mainstream office, audio, video and graphical applications. There is no adaptation necessary of these activities to Open Source software.

Conclusion Needs to mature in TESOL community However, allows administrative,communicative Interactive,productive,pedagogical tasks without the hindrance of expensive site licenses. wide variety of software available to teachers, administrators and support staff software offers flexibility and room for experimentation for the TESOL profession

Needs to mature in TESOL community

However, allows administrative,communicative

Interactive,productive,pedagogical tasks without the hindrance of expensive site licenses.

wide variety of software available to teachers, administrators and support staff

software offers flexibility and room for experimentation for the TESOL profession