Zeynep Voaroglu, UNESCO presented breifly UNESCO and
The UNESCO OER Recommendation which was launchec 25 Novmvver 2019 nad adopted by almost 200 member countries. This OER Recommendantion is the 12 Recommendation of its kind by UNESCO, this mark clearly how importatnt it is, not at least to reach the
SDG4 to Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all. This Recommendation addresses five objectives: (i) building capacity of stakeholders to create, access, re-use, adapt and redistribute OER; (ii) developing supportive policy. She also addrssed the mission for the
UNESCO OER Global OER Coalition. The OER Dynamic Coalition - launched by UNESCO on 2 March 2020 - has been established to support the implementation of the UNESCO OER Recommendation. It is composed of experts from Member States, with a focus on UNESCO National Commissions, IGOs, UNESCO Category 2 Centres, specialised institutions, civil society and the private sector. The concept for the OER Dynamic Coalition originated from the Ministerial Statement delivered at the 2nd World OER Congress, which was signed by the 14 Ministers responsible for Education on the event’s Ministerial Panel. The OER Dynamic Coalition is also referenced in the Preliminary Report for the Draft Recommendation sent out to Member States in April 2019 and was endorsed by the Category 2 Meeting on the draft Recommendation, held on 27 and 28 May 2019. The vision for the OER Dynamic Coalition is to expand and consolidate commitments to actions in the area of OER, and to promote and reinforce international cooperation among all relevant stakeholders. The principles of gender equality, geographic distribution, and open and accessible participation for all stakeholders to contribute ideas, knowledge and information are guiding principles of the OER Dynamic Coalition. mThe OER Dynamic Coalition is made up of four Working Groups dedicated to the first four Areas of Action laid out in the Recommendation, namely: capacity building, supportive policy, inclusive and equitable quality OER, and sustainability models. Its main role is to share necessary expertise, ensure networking and create synergies towards the implementation of each Area of Action.
Jaque Dang and Anais Malbrand prsented the ICDE project with the OER project with the phrancophone countries in Africa.
Myself, Ebba Ossiannilsson presented the ICDE OERAC survey on The UNESCO OER Recommendation and its implementation.
The Survey covered the five areas in The UNESCO OER Recommendation (i) Build the capacity of stakeholders to find, re-use, create and share OER, (ii) Develop supportive policy, (iii) Ensure inclusive and equitable access to quality OER, (iv) Nurture the creation of sustainability models for OER, and (v) Facilitate international cooperation. In addition, some questions were related to the effects of COVID-19 in education communities. Both quantitative and qualitative data were collected. Number of respondents N=123.
Results in short:
Respondents were largely representatives from civil society. They likely would not have insight into internal policy efforts until those policies were finalized and made public.
It is still relatively early for most governments to make policy changes, given the complexity of policy making
The urgency of COVID-19 responses overtook governments works to implement the UNESCO OER Recommendation
In the process of developing policies for supporting OER integration, development and evaluation
COVID-19 acted as a catalyst for greater awareness-raising of OER, and engagement with OER, and support for OER, whether in the form of policy work, infrastructure investment, or resourcesharing was significant.
Most repondents confirmed that due to COVID-19 that most institutions have radically changed the way education institutions do everything: research, teaching, social responsiveness and internationalization. New technologies are used and proven reliabel and there will be more opportunities for international cooperation and creativity with OER
Recommendations in short:
Reinforcing communication around existing OER efforts, and how they further develop in the coming years will give countries recognition for (direct and indirect) work implementing the UNESCO OER Recommendation and strengthen the framework the Recommendation provides for everyone
Developing a stronger network and practice around information sharing. Whenmore policy makers and institutions become aware of existing (1) capacitybuilding initiatives, (2) supportive policies, (3) examples of incentivestructures and initiatives building more equitable access to quality OER, (4) sustainability models, and (5) examples of monitoring and evaluation efforts, in other countries, it will be easier to adapt these efforts to local needs.
Even a number of recommenations were even addressed to ICDE on their workespecially on fostering capacaity building, leadership and international collaboration
The Report will shortly be published by ICDE
REPORT ON THE SURVEY ON THE UNESCO OER RECOMMENDATION: Conclusions and suggestion. Ebba Ossiannilsson, Cengiz Hakan Aydin, Jennryn Wetzler. All authors are ICDE Ambassadors for the Global Advocacy of OER, and in the ICDE OER Advocacy Committee
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