By presenting how Open Educational Resources movement challenges the role of the institution and pedagogy, while lacking to address possible inequalities resulting from promoting 'self directed study', this article asks important questions and stimulates further research.
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"In defining the object of education to be the enhancement of human life, the OER movement tends to naturalise an archetypal human condition: a set of idealised qualities to which learners are expected to adhere." (Knox, 2013, p. 822)
Following the popularization of the Open Educational Resources (OER) through MIT CourseWare and UNESCO policy, Knox (2013) critically analyses crucial aspects of OER including accessibility, applicability, underlying philosophy and ideology. Framing the discussion by a philosophical concept of 'positive and negative liberty' coined by Isaiah Berlin, Knox examines OER through the lens of negative liberty-meaning an action of eliminating barriers to freedoms. His concern is a lack of theory drawing on how learning will take place after those barriers are overcome. On these basis he proposes 5 critiques which adhere to the learning through OER, to further it's refinement. 1. OER promotes self directed learning. What are the pedagogical implications on OER? Can individual learners navigate their own educational journey without much pedagogical support? 2. OER promotes two different models: independent study and limited guidance form the University. It challenges the position of the educator and the institution which is present only through the assessment process. Does such system insinuate inequality between those who receive teachers pedagogical support and those who are self-directed learners? 3.While OER initiatives provide knowledge unrestricted by the institution, they still seek a validation from the institution in a form of accreditation. Is such a process possible without acknowledging the impact of pedagogy on the reputation of the institution? 4. OER movement uses alternative forms of assessment such as 'badges' in order to support students in reaching the goals of the institutional assessment. Are those systems in place based on mistaken assumption about the learners being able to navigate towards such goals through completely independent study? 5. Promoting OER is based on the outcry to combat poverty and lack of access to education. On the other hand, the idea that one needs to constantly undergo education and reassess acquired knowledge to fit the needs of the market, provides a view of the learner as a human capital. How does the OER movement respond to it's alignment with those ideologies of ' marketisation and commodification of education'? References: Knox, J. (2013). Five critiques of the open educational resources movement. Teaching in Higher Education, 18(8), 821-832.
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