Open educational practices for curriculum enhancement

Alejandro Armellini,Ming Nie

doi:10.1080/02680513.2013.796286

Alejandro Armellini, Ming Nie

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1080/02680513.2013.796286

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Abstract

Open educational resources (OER) and open educational practices (OEP) are relatively new areas in educational research. How OER and OEP can help practitioners enhance curricula is one of a number of under-researched topics. This article aims to enable practitioners to identify and implement appropriate open practices to enhance higher education curricula. To that aim, we put forward a framework of four open educational practices based on patterns of OER reuse (‘as is’ or adapted), mapped against the processes of curriculum design and delivery. The framework was developed from the in-depth analysis of 20 cases of higher education practitioners, which revealed patterns of OER reuse across disciplines, institutions and needs. For each open practice we offer evidence, examples and ideas for application by practitioners. We also put forward recommendations for institutional policies on OER and OEP.

Highlights

Introduction and contextThe term open educational resources (OER) was first defined at UNESCO’s 2002 Forum on the Impact of Open Courseware for Higher Education in Developing Countries as the open provision of educational resources, enabled by information and communication technologies, for consultation, use and adaptation by a community of users for noncommercial purposes (UNESCO, 2002: 24).A number of other definitions have emerged since including: teaching, learning, and research resources that reside in the public domain or have been released under an intellectual property license that permits their free use or re-purposing by others
We put forward a framework of four open educational practices based on patterns of Open educational resources (OER) reuse (‘as-is’ or adapted), mapped against the processes of curriculum design and delivery
The framework may be helpful in enabling higher education practitioners to identify and implement appropriate open practices to enhance the design and delivery of curricula

Summary

Introduction

A number of other definitions have emerged since including: teaching, learning, and research resources that reside in the public domain or have been released under an intellectual property license that permits their free use or re-purposing by others. Teaching, learning and research materials in any medium, digital or otherwise, that reside in the public domain or have been released under an open license that permits no-cost access, use, adaptation and redistribution by others with no or limited restrictions. The International Council for Open and Distance Education (n.d.) define open educational practices (OEP) as practices which support the production, use and reuse of high quality open educational resources through institutional policies, which promote innovative pedagogical models, and respect and empower learners as co-producers on their lifelong learning path.

Objectives

Conclusion