[sugar] code contributions to Sugar (was Re: Sugar Clock)

[Yamandu Ploskonka]

The hierarchy of types of decisions you mention is quite interesting.

I am afraid that expediency ("can be done") might end up ruling things.

It is easier (or so I think) to reach consensus or at least an 
I-can-live-with-that in technical matters.

The approach to the pedagogical view has so far been done by ukase from 
Up High, and I guess to a certain extent by preferences by those who 
actually code things.

Example:
The transition from paper-based to XO-based for homework is not 
happening in the field, in large part because what we have is just not 
user-friendly for the teacher.  There has been much mention in its day 
of Up High lack of concern for the comfort of teachers.

Is it because of policy of those who decide what is pedagogical sound 
and what isn't?
In the currently enforced OLPC model, something like "tomorrow do 
exercises 7 to 15, page 85" is deprecated, even though it still is the 
procedure for teacher-kid interaction in most classrooms.

Some sort of a transition model is needed, but such a decision is way 
heavy with policy and pedagogical baggage.

IMHO, adding meta-tags to Write, and making those visible to the teacher 
would be technologically simple, or so I hope, and would go a long way 
to make it simple for teachers to load XO-based work in their own 
machines, and thus a technology solution would bypass a major war of 
religion in the pedagogy and policy fields.  Constructionists would keep 
their Activities, while Transitionists could share the cake.

Yama


David Farning wrote:
> A good first towards solving this challenge is developing a project level self awareness of the different types of decisions we make.
> 1. Pedagogical 
> 2. Technical
> 3. Political
>  
> As a general rule we should strive to make decisions base on their pedagogical soundness, technical merit, and political expediency; In that order.  I am not sure how to implement this. Maybe they should be stated project values?
> thanks
> david 
>
>