This is an extract from a short article I wrote on the benefits of free(as in free speech,not free beer) software :

• Why schools should use Free software:

Free software gives users the freedom to cooperate with each other, to read, modify and change source code. This freedom applies just well to schools as they do to everyone. Proprietary software developers often donate copies proprietary software to the schools. The idea is to catch them "young”. Schools are often short of money, so they readily accept all such donations without a second thought. What happens is that the students take on to proprietary software. It is much like getting addicted to tobacco. Schools little realize that the tobacco company which is offering free cigarette puffs today will charge for it tomorrow when you are addicted. So, the first and foremost task supporters of free software can do is to try and ensure that all schools everywhere run free software. We too must catch them "young”. What will then happen is that children will continue to take their usage of free software to colleges and the organizations they work in after passing out. Free software also allows students to "peek under the hood" and learn "internals" rather than learning manuals describing "what to click and when" - in the process making better programmers out of them. On the contrary, proprietary software rejects their thirst for knowledge: it says, "The knowledge you want, is a secret. It can only be obtained by the chosen ones!” One of the most fundamental goals of schools is not just educating children, but also making socially conscious and responsible citizens out of them. This is why all schools must turn to free software.