School, Play and Ubuntu

"Can learning in school be fun like playing?"

Perhaps, this question has been asked a million times over many years. Yet we see an almost rigid curriculum in most schools that apparently does not seem to change. I was fairly reminded on yet another question that had popped into my mind when i started to learn about Linux nine years back. the question then used to be:


"Can Linux have a graphical user interface like windows?"

Linux offered more control to a user and allowed him to be more productive. But there was a high learning curve to getting the things done. There was a myriad of commands to know, even perhaps to do a simple task. I even remember a hilarious situation where one of my friends could not quit the vi editor.But today, we see that Ubuntu is the answer to that question. It lets a novice user explore Linux through the GUI, while offering him a console to type in commands as he matures using the system. There were GUIs nine years back too, however they were trying hard to cater to an average audience. We have reached a point now, where Ubuntu is a feasible solution to use for parents and grandparents alike. 

I draw an analogy between these questions. Schools of today are like the Linux systems nine years back. They need a good GUI in the form of games that will allow the children to play and learn. Not all the things can be learnt through games, most of it has to do with the permutations and combinations that are involved.. very much like the numerous options a command in Linux can have. Hence augmenting the existing school system with games that teach seems to be the right way. Besides, faster the students learn, the higher they will grow. "Use the technology, to teach technology" is a maxim I like here. So the current curriculum should focus more towards making all the 'frequently used stuff' part of learning into a game. So that students who need just the GUI part will be done with it quickly, while more serious students could quickly learn about the system through GUI and proceed further to use consoles to create their own toolkits. The bar is higher each year in terms of what is to be learned, and so is the necessity to innovate in the curriculum of the future.