3 of 57

OER- Exposure and Experience

Teaching: OER to future teachers and doctoral students since 2016

Open Publication: Three open e-books via MERLOT and all my models and theories as Open Educational Resources

Member: Zenodo, SSRN, MERLOT, Creative Commons Global Network, Europeana- Research Community; Education Community; Copyright Community; Climate Action Community; Open Educators Global Connect; European Commission's Electronic Platform for Adult Learning in Europe (EPALE); European Commission’s Joinup; Disability Philanthropy Forum; SIMOER Commons

Recent Online Courses: OER Development from UNESCO; Exploring Inclusive Pedagogies from the British Council; Digitalisation for Development from the EU International Partnerships Academy; 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development from the International Partnerships Academy; Advanced Cybersecurity Training for Teachers (ACTT) from the Commonwealth of Learning; Understanding Open Educational Resources from the Commonwealth of Learning

Recent Publications: Benefits and Drawbacks of Open Educational Resources for the Learning Communities; Conceptual Review of Creative Commons- A Roadmap towards Open Educational Practices; Use of cost-effective digital technologies for empowering Pakistani women of disadvantaged communities – A Reflective Narrative

4 of 57

Reduce barriers to education (e.g. cost, geography, time, entry requirements)

Help to get new skills

Bridging non-formal and formal education

Supports the modernisation of higher education in Europe,

One of the accelerating educational movements of the 21^st century is the development and adoption of OER.

5 of 57

The UNESCO Recommendation on Open Educational Resources defines OER as:

Learning, teaching and research materials in any format and medium that reside in the public domain or are under copyright that have been released under an open license, that permit no-cost access, re-use, re-purpose, adaptation and redistribution by others.

6 of 57

‘Educational materials made freely and legally available on the Internet for anyone to reuse, revise, remix and redistribute’ (The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, 2013, p. 4)

7 of 57

Creative Commons estimates that there are currently 1.6 billion OER

A tower of used books by Wikimedia Commons

8 of 57

Teaching

Learning

Research

Radio Prog

Policy Preparation

Schools, Colleges, Universities

Libraries

Museums

Online learning platforms

Government agencies

Professional Development

Vocational Training

Continuing education programs

Material Development

Corporate training

9 of 57

Podcast

Radio program

Repository

Modules or Course Outline

Professional or Personal Dev Resources

Course Materials

Online Courses

Videos

Software

Supportive Resources

Research Papers

Open Website

E-books

Creative Resources

Open Policy Draft

Teaching Aids

Textbooks

Images

10 of 57

Sustainable

Contextual

Low or No Cost

Accessible

Digital or Non-Digital

Multilingual

Collaborative

Diverse

Customizable

Innovation

Inclusive

Open Licensed

Use, reuse, modification, and sharing

Open Sharing

Life long learning

11 of 57

Bridge the gap between non-formal, informal and formal learning
Altruistic motivation

12 of 57

Can be big like open course, open book, open curricula

They can also be very small; for example, individual lesson plans or openly licensed videos and images can result in much richer and more engaging resources

Not all OER are online. Some are paper-based. OER are also shared via SD cards and CDs.

13 of 57

OER is 'open' because it has a Creative Commons (CC) licence. CC licensing provides individuals, who wish to share their resources with others, a number of options on how best to do this.

14 of 57

CC0 – public domain; can be used in any way desired

CC-BY (attribution) – the creator of the work must be attributed if the work is reshared.

SA (share alike) – the work must be shared under the same licence as the original version

ND (no derivatives) – the work cannot be adapted

NC (non-commercial) – the work should not be used commercially.

Any combination of these licences can be used, e.g. CC-BY-NC (which means a work’s creator must be attributed, and the work cannot be used commercially)

16 of 57

Retain – (e.g., download, duplicate, store, and manage).
Reuse – (e.g., in a class, in a study group, on a website, in a video).
Revise – (e.g., translate the content into another language).
Remix –(e.g., incorporate the content into a mashup).
Redistribute –(e.g., give a copy of the content to a friend) (Wiley, 2015)

17 of 57

Cost (OER are free or of low cost to use)
Adaptability (OER can usually be adapted)
Shareability (OER can usually be reshared)

18 of 57

OER Commons
OERU
MERLOT
OpenLearn.
African Virtual University OER collection.
Commonwealth Educational Media Centre
COL
Open Education Europa
Zenodo
Skills Commons
Self Publication
SIMA Academy

19 of 57

African Virtual University OER collection
MIT Open CourseWare
National Science Digital Library
OASIS
OpenStax
Open Textbook Library
Saylor Academy
Skills Commons
TESSA (Teacher Education in Sub-Saharan Africa)
TESS-India

20 of 57

Unsplash, Pixabay and Pixahive. More topic focused collections also exist such as Disabled And Here, The Gender Spectrum Collection (covering multiple gender identities) and Images of Empowerment (which focuses on women’s empowerment, lives and work globally).

21 of 57

Main Educational Challenges and OER

Cost of educational resources (teaching and learning)
Access to educational resources
Inequity in education
Lack of up-to-date educational resources
Outdated/unavailable Teacher Professional Development Resources
Outdated/unavailable curricula
Lack of resources in different formats
Limited flexibility in teaching and learning
Lack of collaboration and innovation
Gender and disability resources
Contextual resources (language, culture, etc)

22 of 57

Significance for Teachers

Customize, adapt, and modify educational materials
Reduce the cost of instructional materials and textbooks
Provide access to a wide range of high-quality educational materials
Collaborate and share resources
Promote innovation and improve teaching practices
Professional development and learning
Traditional classrooms, online learning environments, and informal learning contexts
Support creation of contextual resources for others
Networking

23 of 57

Significance for Learners

Accessible
Collaboration
Skills Development
Support Innovation
Up to date Content
Sharing and participation in CoP

24 of 57

Community of Practices-Networking

Support Persons with Disabilities

Increase Intellectual Openness

Improve Accessibility

Support Creativity

Active Participation in Knowledge

Creation and Sharing

25 of 57

EU, Malta and OER

Promoting Open Educational Resources (OER) is on the educational agenda of many countries across Europe, Asia, and Africa.

Sustainable Development is the top priority of the EU based on a core principle of the Treaty of EU.

26 of 57

SDG 4- Quality Education, SDG 5- Gender Equality, SDG 17- Partnerships for the goals, UNESCO Recommendation on OER, and the EU Open Science policy.

Aligning SDG 4 with OER can boost open pedagogy, open collaboration, and form a positive connection between governments and educational institutions to address immediate educational challenges.

27 of 57

One of the reports to the European Commission on improving the quality of teaching and learning in Europe's higher education institutions stresses governments and higher education institutions to ensure open access to educational resources.

Report to the European Commission on Improving the Quality of Teaching and Learning in Europe's Higher Education Institutions" published in 2013 by the High Level Group on the Modernisation of Higher Education.

28 of 57

In 2012, the European Commission published a recommendation on access to and preservation of scientific information, encouraging all EU Member States to put publicly funded research results in the public domain.

Opening up Education Initiative- 2013

KlasCement, and Open Education Europa are just two examples of OER platform that aligns with Open Science philosophy.

The European Commission launched Open Education Europa in September 2013 as part of the 'Opening Up Education' initiative to provide a single gateway to European Open Education Resources (OER). This portal supports the transformation of education through technology.

EU, Malta and OER

1. Creating opportunities for organizations, teachers and learners to innovate;�2. Increased use of Open Educational Resources (OER), ensuring that educational materials produced with public funding are available to all; �3. Better ICT infrastructure and connectivity in schools.

29 of 57

Open Educational Resources Policy in Europe is a project that brings together a coalition of international experts to strengthen the implementation of open education policies across Europe. It aims to take advantage of the current high profile of open education in Europe, demonstrated by developments such as the explicit mention of Open Educational Resources (OER) as an important policy goal in the EU's new educational strategy Opening up Education.

30 of 57

In May 2016, European ministers endorsed clear ambitions for open access during the Competitiveness Council and agreed on setting a target for reaching full open access to scientific publications by 2020.

In a 2017 study, the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission found that most Member States have implemented some kind of initiative with regard to open education. The study identified four types of policies for OER in the 28 EU Member States:

Policies focusing specifically on opening up education through the promotion of OER and open educational practices (OEP).
Policies relating to general ICT for learning with some open education component.
Comprehensive strategic educational policies with some open education component.
Polices designed as national open government plans with some open education component

31 of 57

Lisbon Strategy

Opening Up Education Initiative

Open Science Initiative

European Framework for the Digital Competence of Educators

Digital Single Market Strategy

Erasmus+" program, which funds initiatives related to OER

European Higher Education Area

Creative Commons Europe

European MOOC Consortium

European Agenda for Adult Learning

The European Accessibility Act (EAA)

Digital Education Action Plan 2021-2027

European Commission Recommendation on the European Skills Agenda

Digital Education Action Plan

European Qualifications Framework

Digital Education Action Plan

European Digital Learning Resource Exchange

European e-Competence Framework

32 of 57

Around 54% of the EU population has basic digital skills (as of 2021) . Improving education and skills is a key part of the overall vision for digital transformation in Europe. One of the key priority areas of the EU Digital4Development strategy is to promote digital literacy and skills. In 2020, the European Commission designed a new strategy: ‘Shaping Europe’s Digital Future. The report proposes a Digital Education Action Plan to boost digital literacy and competencies at all levels of education. Under Digital Compass, it aims to educate at least 80% of EU citizens about digital literacy by 2030.

33 of 57

The European Framework for the Digital Competence of Educators (DigCompEdu) is a scientifically sound framework describing what it means for educators to be digitally competent. It provides a general reference frame to support the development of educator-specific digital competences in Europe. DigCompEdu is directed towards educators at all levels of education, from early childhood to higher and adult education, including general and vocational education and training, special needs education, and non-formal learning contexts.

35 of 57

2.3 Managing, protecting and sharing digital resources

To organise digital content and make it available to learners, parents and other educators. To effectively protect sensitive digital content. To respect and correctly apply privacy and copyright rules. To understand the use and creation of open licenses and open educational resources, including their proper attribution.

36 of 57

Open Science is a movement which strives to make every kind of scientific and research information freely available and accessible to all interested parties, ranging from an inquiring amateur to an established professional seeking to change the status quo in a particular field.

38 of 57

Projects funded within the auspices of Horizon 2020 Framework Programme, included specific deliverables, primarily open access to peer-reviewed publications, and encouraged access to, and reuse of research data
Horizon Europe (2021-2027), Open Access practices will continue to have a prominent presence in EU policies and will be embedded in selected work programs.

39 of 57

Around 61% of the Malta population has basic digital skills (as of 2021)

Malta - National e-Skills Strategy 2019-2021 focuses on digital skills in education, ICT- related curriculum changes across educational levels, and combatting the digital divide by encouraging young people to be more participative in the use of technology. The Ministry of Education in Malta recently released a statement highlighting the significance of strengthening digital literacy among learners for digital transition.

40 of 57

In 2017, Malta joined the European Union's "Opening Up Education" initiative
In 2018, the Malta Digital Innovation Authority (MDIA) launched a consultation process to gather feedback on the development of a national OER framework.
In 2019, the Malta Council for Science and Technology (MCST) launched the Malta OER Framework
In 2019, the University of Malta launched the UM OER platform
The Malta Libraries and Archives (MLA) launched the Malta Libraries OER platform in 2020
The Malta Association for Computing Machinery (MACM) has been promoting the use of OER in computing education in Malta

41 of 57

The Malta National Lifelong Learning Strategy 2020 embraces open education and OER to promote connected learning.

42 of 57

Strategy 5

Embrace emergence of Open Education Resources as opportunity for Connected Learning

44 of 57

A report to the Ministry for Education and Employment (MEDE) by the Working Group on Post-Secondary Education and the Future of Education presents a series of recommendations, 5 with number 13 focusing on OER: “Use Open Education Resources and MOOCs to redesign and deliver accessible, competency-based curriculum content” (p. 157).

45 of 57

National Open Access Policy Malta, 2021

The policy defines concrete phases for each subject area, with actions at each phase developing experience, skills, competences, and establish infrastructure, which become permanent, and built-upon in successive phases.
The policy envisages that by the end of 2025 Malta transitions to a state of immediate Open Access in terms of publications by strengthening both Gold and Green Open Access approaches, together with significant progress in upgrading existing and developing new policies, infrastructure, and synergies necessary for FAIR research data management.

46 of 57

Moreover, the policy encourages and provides guidance for relevant, local stakeholders to adjust their respective institutional research assessment and evaluation practices in a way that by the end of 2025, these adequately reward and incentivize Open Access practices. Furthermore, the policy calls for, a systematic upgrade of existing Open Access training activities and the development of well-coordinated support mechanisms fostering upskilling and increase in competences across all relevant Maltese institutions by the end of 2025.

47 of 57

Recommendations by the Policy

Establishment of institutional skills, competencies, and training centres for Open Science
Career Development with an Open Science perspective

50 of 57

The University of Malta (UM) is the leading academic institution and has been steering Open Science principles and practices in Malta since 2014. The scope of the repository is to provide a platform where researchers can deposit and share their research output. Subsequently, an Open Access Policy for the UM has been implemented, the scope of which was to encourage academics and researchers to share their research publications, which policy was later upgraded to a mandate. Moreover, the UM is responsible to advocate in favour of Open Science and provide researchers with the necessary training and support to practice Open Science principles.

The UM actively supports the Malta Council for Science and Technology, being Malta's research funder, with the implementation of Open Science policies at a national level.

51 of 57

The main difficulties that we encounter are limited resources, predominantly human capacity which is instrumental to ensuring that we achieve the culture change which is an important catalyst for the implementation of Open Science practices. Financial limitations, particularly to support of APCs, are also considered a major deterrent. Additionally, as yet, local academics and researchers are not being recognised for practicing Open Science practices. Subsequently, the need to encompass Open Science during the research assessment and evaluation processes is fundamental. Incentives should somehow be given to researchers who practice Open Science, especially when it comes to career progression and allocation of research funds and grants.

Kevin J. Ellul, Director of Library Services and Josianne C. Vello, Deputy Director of Library Services at the University of Malta

52 of 57

Lack of awareness about the existence and benefits of OER
Limited skills and knowledge to find, evaluate, adapt, and use OER effectively
Quality and credibility of OER Limited access to technology and digital infrastructure
Limited incentives and recognition
Digital divides among elderly people, people with disabilities and others
Lack of digital literacy among teachers and learners

53 of 57

Benefit of OER for Malta

Make teachers independent
Promote networking
Accelerate CoP
Participation in policy dialogues
Reduce cost of books from school till university level
Update resources
Promote continuous improvement in instruction and personalised learning
Promote the culture of intellectual openness
Can help persons with disabilities
Excel creativity
Promote collaboration and networking
Made available in multiple languages and adapted for diverse local contexts
Create resources on subjects that are not yet available

54 of 57

Game changer
Source of inspiration/pioneer of OER
Support other institutions and policy makers
Make institutional and global alliance
Contribute to the vision of EU to attain digital competencies
Can become training hub for sustainability of education
Develop repository of resources
Funding possibilities
Establishment of OER Lab

55 of 57

Learners and Teachers

UM’s first equality, diversity, and inclusion action plan

Creatives

All faculties

Digital Education Committee & Corporate Research & Knowledge Transfer

Library and Lab

Research Ethics Committee

Resource Centres

Research Groups

Administrative Staff

Campus FM

Alumni

UM Data Protection and Intellectual Property (IP) policy

Boards and Committees

Management