If they can turn on developer mode, they can run sudo dev_install, which will bring up a gentoo environment on which ChromeOS is based on, and then they have access to portage, and git --help. Outside of that, GalliumOS runs pretty well on most of them.
"Developer mode" (aka the ChromeOS 'Turn on Linux' mode) is not available for Google FamilyLink accounts and is optional on a per-student basis with Chromebooks for Education.
We bought the students Chromebook "Linux" computers; and then Google locked them out of Linux and added a "Turn on Linux" button.
Students are no longer able to run bash, git, or python on their Chromebooks.
Students must only install approved apps from the "Play Store" which takes a 15-30% cut from paid apps and now must use GPay if they process payments. Students and FamilyLink accounts cannot "sideload an APKs" like they can "Install a package" on actual Linux, Mac, and Windows computers.
The SecureBoot kernel and module signing keys can be easily changed on all coreboot machines FWIU.
ChromiumOS was originally Gentoo, Gnome, and Chrome.
Students can't run `git --help`, `python`, or even `adb` on Chromebooks*.
(* Students can't run `git` on a Chromebook without transpiling to WASM (on a different machine) and running all apps as the same user account without SELinux or `ls -Z` on the host).
Students can run `bash`, `git`, and `python` on Linux / Mac / or Windows computers.
There should be a "Computers for STEM" spec.
It is a bait-and-switch shame that we bought Chromebooks for all of the kids and then they were home due to COVID, and they couldn't learn to git, bash, or python with pytest.
