Why LliureX

The Valencian Education Council banks on fomenting technological modernisation carried out in the framework of a training process.

The goal is to train professionals who use ICT in their daily work and are able to develop new software adapted to the specific needs that can be found in the region.

The Valencian Education Council trusts on free software as the cornerstone on which to foment ICT for educational purposes.

When faced with the question, “Why using Free Software for this purpose?”, some good reasons might come up:

• Generic Technology Training

  Students must be trained to use ICT according to its functionality and not to the one set by the developer and supplier, as it happens with owner software. If students are able to look up words in a paper dictionary, regardless of the publishing company, they should be able as well of writing a text using any word processor, regardless the development company. Otherwise, we are not educating but training them for specific products consumption.

  Training should be focused on generic technology without forcing either students or education institutions to face the high cost of software licenses since it further inhibits ICT usage.

  This usually occurs when referring to software packages used to manage texts, data bases and mailing lists, surf the Internet and so on. Thus and from this point of view, using free software has become a basic and fundamental need.

• The technology breach

  The progressive reduction in hardware costs eases the acquisition of computers powerful enough to perform essential duties.

  However, difficulties have arisen from original software acquisition. Indeed, that is what makes the difference between those students who can afford original software licences and those who are doomed to get illegal copies since they lack the necessary economic resources to acquire the original one.

  Likewise, if students take textbooks home to extend their learning process outside the classroom it is necessary that they can use at home the same software they have at other educational centres.

  This becomes a rather difficult task to carry out within the framework of Owner Software since it implies acquiring a licence for each computer to be run with that software.

• Bilingualism

  Since the Valencian region must be considered bilingual, ICT cannot leave this question aside. The fact that both teachers and students might work in the classroom using their vernacular language or even, the possibility of developing new applications or curricular contents shall not be appealing enough for multinational businesses to develop specific software, mainly because of economic and political reasons. However, this has become a fundamental aspect to be taken into account and which can only be carried out with free software.

• Resource Optimization. Economy

  Implementing free software systems implies unleashing resources which are currently being used for acquiring Owner Software licences and for hardware repairs instead of being aimed at building new schools, providing teaching material or reducing the computer/student ratio.

  From the point of view of the Council Of Education, it is inadmissible to pay for something that can be obtained free of licensing charge.

To sum up, the LliureX project aims at integrating ICT in the classroom using mainly free software.