Free Software for Education
Here are two lists of high-quality free/libre software applications that can be used in schools and educational institutions of all levels. The first one is a list of free/libre programs along with the popular proprietary (nonfree) applications they replace. The second one contains free/libre programs that do not necessarily replace a proprietary counterpart but can be very useful to students and teachers.
When we say these programs are free/libre, we mean they are released under a license that grants all users four essential freedoms: the freedoms to run, study, copy, modify and redistribute the program so as to contribute to the community. It does not necessarly mean zero price, although almost all these programs are gratis. This is a secondary additional benefit that schools may take into consideration.
Everyone should use free software, because only free software gives users the freedom that lets them control their own computers. Proprietary programs put the users under the power of the software developers. However, there are specific ethical reasons that apply to education.
In addition to the wrong of nonfree software, the use of third-party network services in schools poses yet another problem: the collection of students' (and teachers') personal data by companies. But even if the school never uses those services, one cannot be sure that the nonfree programs are not sending personal data somewhere. In fact, the source code of proprietary programs (with a few exceptions) is secret, so users can't know what the software is really doing.
Category | Free/libre program | Features | Replacement for |
---|---|---|---|
Operating systems | GNU/Linux Distributions | Composed exclusively of software that respects your freedom. | ChromeOS (Google) ChromiumOS (Google) Microsoft Windows (any version) MacOS, iOS (Apple) |
Web browsers | Epiphany GNU IceCat |
These browsers do not track users. | Chrome, Chromium (Google) Internet Explorer, Edge (Microsoft) Safari (Apple) |
Office | LibreOffice | Complete office suite. No need to upload documents to third-party servers. | Microsoft Office, Office 365 |
Etherpad, EtherCalc | Real-time collaborative text editor and spreadsheet that run in your browser. | Google Docs, Sheets | |
E-learning platforms | Moodle |
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Google Classroom, Blackboard |
File synchronization | ownCloud Nextcloud |
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Drive, Calendar, Contacts (Google) OneDrive, Outlook (Microsoft) |
Media sharing | GNU MediaGoblin |
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YouTube, Google Photos, Picasa (Google) |
Kolab |
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Gmail, Google Calendar, Contacts, Google Drive (Google) Outlook, Live (Microsoft) |
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Conferencing (video, audio, chat, text) | GNU Jami |
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Google Hangouts Skype (Microsoft) Microsoft Teams Zoom |
Jitsi Jitsi Meet |
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BigBlueButton |
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Games | Minetest | Build, explore and play in vast cube worlds, alone or with friends. Create mods which aren't limited by proprietary restrictions. | Minecraft (Microsoft) |
Here's some additional free software useful for educational purposes:
Category | Free/libre program | Description |
---|---|---|
Art, graphics and design | Blender | 3D suite which includes a video editor and a game engine that can be used without programming (via logic blocks.) |
FreeCAD | High-quality parametric 3D CAD modeler. | |
GIMP | Graphics editor suitable for image retouching, editing and drawing (case study.) | |
Krita | Fully featured, easy to use digital painting program, suitable for students and professionals alike. | |
Tux Paint | Graphics editor aimed at young children (case study.) | |
Games and educational activities | GCompris | Educational software suite comprising of numerous activities for children aged 2 to 10 (case study.) |
Maths | GNU Octave | High-level interpreted language similar to proprietary MATLAB, primarily intended for numerical computations. |
Physics | FisicaLab | Solve physics problems creatively. Focus in physics concepts while the program takes care of the mathematical details. |
Music | GNU Solfege | Ear and music training program. |
LMMS | Professional-grade (but easy to use) music creation software and digital audio workstation. | |
MuseScore | Fully featured scorewriter, with support for MIDI playback. | |
Programming | GDevelop | Codeless game development tool based on drag and drop. Ideal to teach students programming concepts while having fun. |
Racket | Programming language and environment suitable for both students and Lisp/Scheme wizards. Despite it being a fully-featured functional programming language, it was designed to be educational. | |
Ruby | Well-known programming language described by its users as “beautiful, artful, handy, and practical.” |
The lists above are a selection of free software applications suitable for the most common educational activities. The Free Software Foundation keeps a comprehensive database of educational software at the Free Software Directory. If you know about a free/libre program suited for schools and not listed here, please contact us at <education@gnu.org> to let us know.