Midland Valley High School, in Aiken, SC, recently received a grant of $1 million - out of 5 million going to various schools. The grant will allow the school to offer each freshman student a laptop they can keep for the full 4 years they attend the school. Additionally, the school is deploying Moodle, a GPL'ed e-learning system. So far, about a dozen teachers have been trained in using Moodle to help their students. The project represents a shift in teaching methods for the school. Educators do not intend to replace technology with human interaction, but rather to use technology to improve students' learning abilities and experience.

The non-Free Blackboard system costs $100,000 and up, annually, to deploy, as compared to Moodle. You can learn more about Moodle deployments.

Keep your eyes peeled for more Moodle-related news. Blue GNU has learned that some important initiatives along these lines are underway.