Last year I joined an education course that was open access: Facilitating Online Learning Communities. This means the course was presented online in a way that anyone could access the material as well as the enrolled students. The course was offered by Manukau Institute of Technology and was facilitated by Leigh Blackall and Bronwyn Hegarty who work in the Educational Development Centre at Otago Polytechnic, Dunedin.
The primary reason I did this was for my own personal development and interest because I wanted to know more about social networking, blogs, wikis and so on. The driver behind this was my own PhD research into e-mentoring as well as my teaching involvement in online midwifery education courses.
I have enjoyed the course so much and achieved a number of the learning outcomes of the course so I have enrolled and will be formally completing the assignments over the next few weeks. All the assignments will be recorded on this blog.
So whilst there may be concerns about open access to education material, not least issues of license and of intellectual property, in this case the institute who has offered the material has gained a student (and the financial benefit!).
Image: 'gwb_Tür zu3' Jonas K
www.flickr.com/photos/67715696@N00/431800494
4 comments:
hmm, I hope you will draw this out more and expand on the points you have touched on here. If you do, I will have something to refer to in regards to a success story for Open Education on my blog. A story that is a win win for the learner and the bums on seats institution... more please?
Give me an idea of what you're interested in - what feedback would you like to know about, Leigh?
not looking for feedback. Am interested to read your thoughts and ideas on open access based on yours and carolyn's experiences. What ideas do you get from it? What courses would it work and not work for you think? how does it impact on that terrible 10% rule potentially? what problems with it? Whats the potential of it? Are you going to try it?
Here's my answers to your questions and some further thoughts about my experience.
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