In 2005 UNESCO launched a project to increase awareness, and support capacity building and informed decision making with respect to the provision and use of Open Educational Resources (OER). This was achieved through the creation of an international Community of Interest, which today numbers almost 600 members from 98 countries – including almost 100 members in Africa. The presentation will begin with a brief overview of the rationale behind the project, in particular how it fits with UNESCO’s commitment to its Member States to support Education for All and the development of Knowledge Societies. The topics for discussion in the community were determined through a polling of members, following a first Internet discussion forum. The outcomes of these discussions – on developing a research agenda for OER, exploring the idea of a "do-it-yourself"/"do-it-together" resource for capacity development, and identifying FOSS tools for OER and lessons learned from the FOSS movement – will be summarized. All have resulted in "living" resources that can serve as a base for further work – the outline of the DIY/DIT resource is currently being used, for example, to structure the content of an OER toolkit. After 18 months of intense reflection, it could be expected that the community would have formed a considered opinion on the priority issues to advance the OER movement and the stakeholders that should take action. The results of that consultation exercise, which forms a “way forward” for the fledgling OER movement, will be shared during the session, with a particular focus on the agenda identified by members of the community in Africa.
SPEAKER BIO :
Catriona Savage joined UNESCO in 2002. The current focus of her work is Open Educational Resources, in particular support to UNESCO's international community on OER, first at the International Institute for Educational Planning, and since November 2007 in the Education Sector. She is responsible for maintaining the OER website and created the community wiki – a first for UNESCO. She also supported IIEP's community on Free and Open Source Software for education, and the evaluation process for a project to develop regional knowledge bases to support decision making for open and distance learning. Catriona Savage holds a Master's degree from the University of Cambridge (United Kingdom).
