Open ENT (Espace Numérique de Travail - in French) is the name given to the Digital Workspace Environment for the entire educational community: students, teachers, families and educational staff. Open ENT is used in preschool, elementary schools and middle schools in geographical departments and in high schools in the regions. It facilitates exchanges between members of the educational community and develops the pedagogical uses of digital technology.
Developed in Open Source (under free license) at the initiative of Open Digital Education, Open ENT is evolving and growing under the impetus of the community of local authorities using this solution. By pooling their efforts and needs, members of the Open ENT community are helping to shape a renewed vision of digital education.
Open ENT in a nutshell
A first version in 2009 allowed us to analyze the legitimacy of a collective approach based on a sovereign technical solution under an Open Source license. It was followed by successive versions focused on secondary education (middle and high schools), then extended to primary education (preschool and elementary school). In 2017, the Open ENT became the Open ENT NG ("NG" = New Generation) as a new innovative educative social network for the entire educational community (students, parents, teachers, staff...).
Open ENT NG is a portal with access to many enhanced pedagogical services, administrative and collaborative tools. It requires one single log-in, and this time-saving feature is very much appreciated by users. It offers a true educational social network with a redesigned interface, increased performance and new features.
A common governance has been established between a community of over 10 local authorities and their private partners.
Governance
The inter-communal governance mode specific to Open ENT enables each newcomer to benefit from all the latest developments initiated by the local authorities. In turn, newcomers will be able to finance the development of new services, which will be of mutual benefit to the entire community.
The governance body convenes quarterly with representatives of the user authorities. During these meetings, the community members discuss the desired evolution for the solution and set the strategic roadmap for the Open ENT project.
Organization and implementation of changes
Each Open ENT user authority defines its own requirements for the evolution of the ENT solution within its project team. Simple and specific evolutions are directly financed by the requesting authority. These will feed into the solution and will benefit all user authorities.
Major developments are discussed within the inter-community governance body and, if necessary, are co-financed by several local authorities (and also by the aforementioned private companies). The development cycle generally allows the deployment of 4 to 5 versions per year. Each local authority then tests the functionality of the proposed changes.
And it works
Statistics from Paris Classe Numérique (name of Parisian ENT) and sister solutions based on the same technology (source: Open Digital Education® September 2020):