Re: [Fsfe-uk] An ignorant question?

[Ramanan Selvaratnam]

Andrew Atkinson wrote:

>  
>
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: address@hidden
> > [mailto:address@hidden Behalf Of Ciaran
> > O'Riordan
> > Sent: 06 June 2003 20:40
> > To: address@hidden
> > Subject: Re: [Fsfe-uk] An ignorant question?
> >
> >
> > What format of class are you planning?
> >
> > If you're going to stand at the top of the class with one
> > screen, I'd suggest a presentation tool such as OpenOffice Impress.
> >
> > If each student has a computer, you could write some html/php or
> > javascript pages and your students would just use a browser
> > (such as mozilla/Galeon).
> >
> > If neither of these suggestions are useful, email a slightly longer
> > description of your plan, I'm sure free software can do it :) (better)
> >
> > Ciaran O'Riordan
> >    
>
> I am just at the start of the process and therefore am still playing with
> everything. Yes it will include delivery from the front, but I want a system
> that is really interactive, and adapts to the kids. I cannot remember the
> last time I stuck to a lesson plan for a whole lesson. At any point you need
> to be ready to go off down the line that the pupils take you. This can
> include refreshing things to approaching a topic from a completely different
> angle (this is what makes teaching exciting). So while OoImpress has its
> place it is not ideal for maths.
> What I have as the grand ultimate plan is a system where you can flow with
> the pupils ideas. 
Is this not all to do with business logic and the like.
If I am correct Macromedia's solutions for such  backends are 
increasingly being  shunned by developers who plug on freely 
distibutable products application servers like JBoss.
(I hope someone else who knows more aboout this can pick up from here if 
there is sense in what I write)

Why set the outside requirements (Macromedia Flash) and then try to look 
inwards?
Should it not be the otheway around for 'grand plans' ?

For capable frontends how about (ex) Gimp ToolKit (GTK) or many similar 
healthy competitors?

> Years ago on the Acorn I wrote a simple program to allow
> the user to put different shapes in front of a waves and therefore allowing
> the user to see the refraction patterns and play with them. I could
> (possibly) still sit down and do this again. This is not what education
> needs. Most teachers cannot (and should not have the need to) program
> scripts. I am looking to produce or find a tool that will allow teachers to
> develop their own interactive lessons, that during the lesson pupils can
> experiment with, staff can adapt, and then it can be put on the web so the
> pupils can use it latter for homework or revision. There are lots of steps
> to get to the ultimate end, but I am having difficulty starting. At the
> moment Flash is the closest I have found.
> I hope you are right that free software can do it better 8-)
>
> Andrew
>
>  
>
> > On Fri, Jun 06, 2003 at 08:07:05PM +0100, Andrew Atkinson wrote:
> >    
> >
> > > hello
> > >
> > > I have been tinkering with delivering lessons using Flash. Now
> > >      
> > this is what
> >    
> >
> > > I call an educational tool. But what would you lot suggest I
> > >      
> > use. To keep me
> >    
> >
> > > from going mad I have to keep preparation time to a minimum. I have on
> > > average five 50 minute lessons a day, plus marking and running
> > >      
> > the IT and
> >    
> >
> > > ICT department. In the end I want to be able to spread the use to all
> > > teachers IT literate or not.
> > >
> > > Andrew Atkinson
> > > Maths and ICT teacher (aged 11-18)
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >