Technology In Education Online

OK, so I maybe a little late to the revolution but I’ve got the religion now! Open source is my new found call to arms!  The latest- Joomla!  A great open source resource used to create a website.  In looking at a collaborative approach to web development I looked at several options – Joomla!, Drupal, DotNetNuke, and Mambo.  I settled on Joomla! after setting up some test sites and running through the various options.

At a recent NJAET executive board meeting I demoed a mock site I set up using Joomla! and people were amazed out the power behind it and what it can do.  With the additional extensions that are available, and the ease that they install, I’m convinced that utilizing a CMS is the best solution.  My goal to find ways for educators to collaborate and not work in isolation.  The great thing about Joomla! is that no one needs to be the sole source of disseminating information.  You now have the option to assign a variety of roles to individuals. You can have users, authors, publishers, administrators, etc. all contributing to creating an active website. For those that like to be in charge it means giving up a little bit of the power to allow others to participate. So all of you control freaks out there take a deep breath and plunge right in. You’ll find it all works out for the better in the long run.

As time moves along I find myself moving away from the mega software publishers to open source solutions.  The great thing also is there is a whole new industry out there of people developing additions to these great open source software solutions.  Some of the additional extensions are commercial products. But I’m more open to spending a little to support these developers than continued to feed those hungry giants out there.  So if you’ve been contemplating a transformation of your website, take a look at one of these open source CMS programs.

This website will focus on technology in education. Discussions will revolve around how educators are utilizing technology in the classroom. Topics such as integrating vs. use and the confusion around wht the difference is between the two will be included. Other topics will include reviews and comments on software and hardware. I hope people find this blog useful and will contribute to its’ development.

Alan