E-learning initiatives at The Open University - Professor Andy Lane
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E-learning initiatives at The Open University Professor Andy Lane
The Open University
The OU has built its success and reputation on the
foundation of the „supported open learning‟ model:
• blend of outstanding learning materials,
• excellent student support,
• professional logistics, and
• leading research and scholarship.
Why have an Open University? • To make higher education (HE) available to many more people – widening participation • To exploit technologies, methods and pedagogy to achieve increased access to HE • To pioneer a new system of education: „supported open learning‟ • To take the university to the student • To achieve high quality, cost-effective, open learning – accessible and inclusive
What is an Open University? • Open – to people Playing a leading role in the transition to mass higher education by serving an increasingly large and diverse student body. • Open – to places Contributing to a widening of educational opportunities by making our programmes, courses and services available UK-wide and internationally.
What is an Open University? cont‟d • Open – to methods Exploiting distance-teaching methods, new learning technologies and teaching techniques to serve home- and work-based students. • Open – to ideas The OU is a vibrant academic community dedicated to the expansion, refinement and sharing of knowledge.
and….. open – to time • Increasingly, students will study in a time of their own choosing and at a pace that suits them • The OU will help students manage home, family, work and study • Students can study at convenient times and at their own pace: flexibility • Expansion of educational opportunity through intelligent use of technology
Module Components • Study Guide and workbooks • Computing software, practical kits • Face-to-face or on-line tutorials • TV or radio broadcasts on BBC • Alternative eLearning options • CD-ROM, DVD, off-line, on-line • Day Workshops or Residential Schools • Assessment and Examination
How technology has enhanced supported open learning • Always utilised range of information and communication technologies (print, radio, television, audio, videocassette, CD/DVDs) • Multiple-media content is developed by teams drawing on a range of specialists with focus on pedagogy and appropriate use of technology • Supported Open Learning facilitates the relationship between the learner and the content and the people who can support the learning process • Technology can enhance SOL by helping with the availability and accessibility of the content and the relationships between the learner and other people
Wide range of media options • Print: Books, supplementary print, readers • Online media: students access web content, online student activities, student conferencing via the OU Virtual Learning Environment (VLE)… which uses open- source software called Moodle • Offline media: „rich media‟ delivered on disk, e.g. DVD (sound and video assets, menu-driven)
Going online… • Web-enhanced courses all OU courses have a website, but web-based resources are an optional component • Web focused courses these courses have component(s) that are only accessible online • Web-intensive courses the web is the primary learning environment
module project
team team
associate module curriculum media project media account
dean chair manager manager manager
senior curriculum editing graphics
manager
sound & vision interactive
curriculum academic team
office
copublishing technical testing
module
rights materials
secretary
project despatch
support
External office plus…
AssessorManaging online learning
Changing media and formats
Evolutionary change
Moodle • A CMS/VLE software application to create flexible web- based environments for creating and managing online courses • Used for both OU VLE and OpenLearn‟s LearningSpace and LabSpace • A modular toolbox • A system for creating communities of learners • Open source community and philosophy
XML schema • Formal description of abstract structure of a set of data • Definition of what elements are (and are not) allowed at any point; what the attributes for any element may be; the number of occurrences of elements; etc.. Q: What does all that mean, then? A: Describing content, not prescribing appearance
So what? • OU learning materials with clear structures • Retagging of legacy content to conform to schema and writing of new content within schema • Allows for exchange, re-use, sharing, output across different media in many different formats
Informal and non-formal to formal learning and back again
Being open to change
Open Educational Resources are “…
digitised materials offered freely and
http://www.flickr.com/photos/mag3737/1914076277/
openly for educators, students and self
learners to use and reuse for teaching,
learning and research. “ Giving Knowledge for
Free: The Emergence of Open Educational
Image by: mag3737,
Resources, OECD 2007
“The most promising initiative in e-learning
is the concept – and the developing
reality, of open educational resources.” Sir
John Daniel (OU, UNESCO, Commonwealth of
Learning)Why did OU make some of its
educational resources open?
• A growing momentum behind OER worldwide
and emergence of creative commons licences
• Consistent with the OU‟s commitment to social
justice and widening participation
• Helps build markets and reputation
• Bridges the divide between formal and informal
learning
• A test bed for new e-learning developments and
an opportunity to research and evaluate them
• A way of drawing in materials from other
organisations
• Provides the basis for world-wide collaborationsOpenLearn is …
• An institution-wide programme;
• A sub-brand for OU‟s open educational media
• Making some of the OU‟s educational materials
freely available in a web-based open learning
environment;
• Seeking to advance open educational practices by:
– Deploying leading-edge learning management tools for learner
support;
– Encouraging the creation of non-formal collaborative learning
communities;
– Encouraging other institutions to reuse and rework the content;
– Enhancing international research-based knowledge about modern
pedagogies for higher education.OpenLearn‟s website architecture
Information and short form content
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