January 2008

Open Ed Declaration

Posted by karen on January 23, 2008 in Uncategorized

OK, I’ve given a close read to the Capetown Open Education Declaration. (If, like me, you’ve put off doing so because of time constraints, take 5 minutes and look it over. It is neither long nor complex.)

For all the apparent controversy surrounding this document, I really can’t imagine why folks are fussing about it. It is a simple and straightforward document that outlines the basic principles of the OER movement and the potential it offers.

As for the criticisms, yes, I agree that the drafting process could have been more”open” (though many people like me, a “nobody” in this field, were given opportunities to offer comment), but perhaps the writers have learned from the experience. And regardless of the process, the results are laudable. Signing the declaration is an endorsement of the general idea of OER, nothing more. (Once I worked for an organization that involved a group that had a great deal of discord. It was once said that if there was a proposal to give everyone $100, an agreement couldn’t be reached. Sometime the OER community reminds me of that.)

And as for the backlash from what David Wiley calls the “Libre License League,” their militant and non-inclusive approach threatens to relegate the OER movement to a fringe effort. I think it’s wonderful that some materials are completely free, but why insist that everything meet these criteria? Why castigate those who opt for licenses that while not completely free still offer materials to millions of learners worldwide at no charge? (And as for commercial publishers, even they understand that OER is emerging as a challenge to them. They are not salivating at reading this declaration as some suggest.)

It’s very odd to me that people involved in open endeavours would have such an elitist orientation. What happened to live and let live? Everyone has to make their own choices.

At any rate, I’ve digressed. If you haven’t, read the declaration. Spread the word. Keep doing good work. And share nicely.

Tags: oer | capetown
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Capetown declaration official launch

Posted by karen on January 19, 2008 in Uncategorized

 Ahrash Bissell, Executive Director of ccLearn, sent this message out about the recently issued Capetown declaration on OER:

Dear friends and colleagues,

Some of you may already know that I have been working with the Shuttleworth Foundation, Wikimedia and other organizations to draft and release this Declaration on the future of open education:

http://www.capetowndeclaration.org/

The Declaration is a rallying point for people who want to accelerate the growth of innovative, collaborative approaches to learning. We’re asking people to sign on to the Declaration online:

http://www.capetowndeclaration.org/sign-declaration

The Declaration officially launches next Tuesday (Jan 22), and we are hoping to have as many people as possible indicating their support. Obviously, you should only sign it if you agree with it! But speaking from a totally biased perspective, the ideas within are highly compelling, and the potential positive impacts on education of all levels and forms are likely to be substantial. This is the first time that the various people and organizations working on “opening up” educational materials and practices have made a joint statement that establishes some fundamental principles driving the movement. I certainly hope you will join in, regardless of your particular relationship to openness and formal education.

I am always happy to discuss further anything related to this effort or open education generally. Please do pass this along to anyone else who might be interested.

Others have blogged about this extensively already. I’ve been waiting to comment until I had a little more time. Stay tuned for my thoughts.

If you haven’t read this and decided whether to add your signature, now is a good time.

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Mobile phones are the computers that are most universal

Posted by karen on January 17, 2008 in Uncategorized

In the United States, schools are in a constant battle to try to keep cell phones out of schools. Districts issue policies that ban cell phones; parents protest the rules as a “safety issue”; court cases result. Few are seeing the educational possibilities. Trying to express my own feelings about cell phones in schools in less than 50 words recently, I said:

 ”Schools ban cell phones out of fear and the lack of a vision of potential advantages. How much would that change if every child could access interactive textbooks, instructional videos, educational simulations, collaborative communities, and an electronic library via their phone? We should teach students responsible use and take advantage of this powerful (and potentially free) tool for learning and collaboration. “

And while I do see potential for cell phones for learning here, the far greater potential is in the developing world. It seems to me that if OER is going make a difference to education worldwide, it is likely to be tied to mobile phone usage. BBC just ran a good article about this.

I’ve been thinking about potentially interesting OER projects on which to collaborate with developing country schools. This (combined with the dictionary project) just might be it.

Tags: oer | mobile | mobile phones | curriculum
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Online course on ed tech

Posted by karen on January 5, 2008 in Uncategorized

Alec Couros and the University of Regina are starting a new online course called Computers in the Classroom: Appropriate Curriculum and Instruction Related to Computer Technology.

The course will include some coverage of open education tools, and Alec has told me that visitors are welcome. Thanks, Alec! (I’m looking forward to watching and participating as time permits, though my current workload is such that I won’t be able to participate to the degree I did in David Wiley’s Open Ed course.)

Looking at the course wiki and overview also provides another take on how to combine free and open synchronous and asynchronous tools for online learning.

Tags: oer | online course
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