[Open-education] World Education Forum and Open Education / OER

Wed May 20 17:53:21 UTC 2015

Hi all,

Is there anything OER or Open Education related going on at the World
Education Forum "Equitable and inclusive quality education and lifelong
learning"? It's possible that I've missed it... please tell me if I have!

Also, the last two Global Monitoring Reports only mention OER in passing,
with no mention of Open Ed. / Creative Commons or e.g. TESSA / TESS-India.
Here's how OER is mentioned:

*"Of greater significance is identifying other settings and learning
frameworks – for example, distance and open education, non-formal
education, on-the job training and adult education – that may significantly
augment skill acquisition among adults over the life course."* (2015 report)

*"The use of ICT for distance education also requires investment in
infrastructure, hardware and materials. South Africa is an example of a
country that is addressing this need through innovation in Open Education
Resources (South African Institute for Distance Education, 2010), which can
dramatically reduce costs for participating institutions and
learners." (*2013/14
report)
(My bold. Of course, even those brief mentions, if looked at in detail, are
to some extent problematic.)

Given the global aspirations for Open Education, OER, and CC, is this ok?
Should we do more? Is enough being done for primary/secondary education in
developing countries regarding "open"?

Looking at the tweets for the World Education Forum, there is of course a
big focus on equity, which is of course important, as that message hasn't
been fully heard yet by everybody. But we know from education that the
"what" is often easily agreed - the how is more complex. Of course OER
alone won't solve any problems, but I think we're probably agreed that OER
should be part of an equitable solution.

Any thoughts?
Bjoern

(For those who prefer twitter for discussion:
https://twitter.com/bjoernhassler/status/601073454524321792 )
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