OER AND THE INNOVATION
OF LEARNING
Dirk Van Damme
OECD/EDU/IMEP
twitter @VanDammeEDU #OEGlobal
• Open Education and Open Educational Resources
(OER) in particular are potentially a tremendously
powerful agent of change and innovation
• Still, one has the impression that the systemic
transformative impact of ‘Open’ is greater in, say,
science and research than in education
– MOOCs – which should not be seen as equivalent to
‘Open’ – have in a way ‘hijacked’ this potential without
yet having delivered systemic change
• Why is that? What is needed?
2
Introduction
• OER are not a technological innovation, but they are
a force of social and educational innovation made
possible by technology
• The innovation potential of OER can only be
unlocked when aligning with the innovation needs of
education systems themselves
• So, the question is not how to mainstream OER, but
how we can utilise OER for the innovation focused
education policies
Introduction
3
• Talk based on an OECD Centre for Educational
Research and Innovation (CERI) project on the
policy benefits of OER, sponsored by the
Hewlett Foundation
• Report Open Educational resources: a Catalyst
for Innovation to be published later this year
4
Introduction
21ST CENTURY EDUCATION: MORE OF THE SAME OR
SOMETHING ELSE?
5
• Relentless expansion of education systems
Setting the scene – the big picture
6
• Relentless expansion of education systems
Setting the scene – the big picture
-10
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
-10
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
Isra
el
Un
ited
Sta
tes
Ger
man
y
Bra
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Esto
nia
Au
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n F
eder
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Fin
lan
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Ch
ile
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Den
mar
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Mex
ico
Swit
zerl
and
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alan
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Can
ada
Slo
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Rep
ub
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Icel
and
Au
stra
lia
Gre
ece
Swed
en
EU 2
1 a
vera
ge
OEC
D a
vera
ge
No
rway
Hu
nga
ry
Net
her
lan
ds
Cze
ch R
epu
blic
Un
ited
Kin
gdo
m
Po
rtu
gal
Bel
giu
m
Slo
ven
ia
Spai
n
Fran
ce
Luxe
mb
ou
rg
Irel
and
Jap
an
Po
lan
d
Ko
rea
Difference between the 25-34 and 55-64 year-old population with tertiary education (right axis)
Proportion of the 25-34 year-old population with tertiary education (left axis)
Proportion of the 55-64 year-old population with tertiary education (left axis)%
Percentage points
7
• Relentless expansion of education systems
• Growing impact of education on various social
and economic outcomes
Setting the scene – the big picture
8
• Relentless expansion of education systems
• Growing impact of education on various social
and economic outcomes
Setting the scene – the big picture
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
Cze
ch R
epu
blic
Ital
y
Spai
n
Esto
nia
Ger
man
y
Jap
an
Slo
vak
Rep
ub
lic
Irel
and
Can
ada
Ko
rea
Engl
and
/N. I
rela
nd
(U
K)
Au
stri
a
Ave
rage
Flan
de
rs (
Bel
giu
m)
Au
stra
lia
Un
ited
Sta
tes
Net
her
lan
ds
Swed
en
Den
mar
k
Fin
lan
d
No
rway
%
Below upper secondary education
Upper secondary or post-secondary non-tertiary education
Tertiary Education
An individual with a higher level of education is more
likely to believe they have a say in government
9
• Relentless expansion of education systems
• Growing impact of education on various social
and economic outcomes
• But challenges remain and magnify
– The equity and social mobility challenge
– The quality challenge
– The efficiency challenge
Setting the scene – the big picture
10
Setting the scene – the big picture
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
Czech…
Ja
pa
n
Germ
any
Esto
nia
Pola
nd
Cana
da
Norw
ay
United
…
Russia
n…
Fin
land
Slo
vak…
Austr
ia
Sw
ede
n
Eng
land
/…
Denm
ark
Fla
nde
rs…
Avera
ge
Fra
nce
Kore
a
Austr
alia
Neth
erla
n…
Irela
nd
Italy
Spa
in
Proportion of young students (20-34 year-olds) in tertiary education whose parents have below uppersecondary education
Proportion of parents with below upper secondary education in the total parent population%
The participation of students in HE from low-educated
families is less than half of their share in the population
11
Setting the scene – the big picture
0
10
20
30
40
Ho
ng
Ko
ng-
Ch
ina
Ko
rea
+
Liec
hte
nst
ein
Mac
ao-C
hin
a +
Jap
an
Swit
zerl
and
Bel
giu
m -
Ne
ther
lan
ds
-
Ge
rman
y
Po
lan
d +
Can
ada
-
Fin
lan
d -
Ne
w Z
eal
and
-
Au
stra
lia -
Au
stri
a
OEC
D a
vera
ge 2
003
-
Fran
ce
Cze
ch R
ep
ub
lic -
Luxe
mb
ou
rg
Ice
lan
d -
Slo
vak
Re
pu
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Ire
lan
d
Po
rtu
gal
+
Den
mar
k -
Ital
y +
No
rway
-
Hu
nga
ry
Un
ite
d S
tate
s
Swe
de
n -
Spai
n
Latv
ia
Ru
ssia
n F
ed
era
tio
n
Turk
ey
Gre
ece
Thai
lan
d
Uru
guay
-
Tun
isia
Bra
zil
Me
xico
Ind
on
esi
a
% 2012 2003
In most countries the percentage of top performers in
math in PISA has declined between 2003 and 2012
12
Setting the scene – the big picture
80
90
100
110
120
130
140
Bra
zil
Chile
Slo
vak R
epu
blic
Kore
a
Pola
nd
Cze
ch R
ep
ub
lic
Cana
da
Austr
alia
Isra
el
Germ
any
Sw
itze
rla
nd
Port
ug
al
Me
xic
o
Un
ited
Kin
gd
om
Fin
land
Sw
ede
n
EU
21 a
vera
ge
OE
CD
ave
rag
e
Ne
the
rla
nds
Austr
ia
Ja
pa
n
Norw
ay
Un
ited
Sta
tes
Irela
nd
Belg
ium
Slo
ven
ia
Fra
nce
Russia
n F
ede
ratio
n
Spa
in
Esto
nia
Icela
nd
De
nm
ark
Italy
Hung
ary
Index of change (2008=100)
Change in expenditure
Change in the number of students (in full-time equivalents)
Change in expenditure per student
Primary, secondary and post-secondary non-tertiary education
In most countries the per student expenditure
has continued to increase
13
• Can we continue
– To assume that an industrial model of education will serve the needs of 21st century societies?
– Expanding our systems quantitatively?
– Exporting our model to emerging and developing countries?
– Pretending that nothing is changing in the outside world, impacting on the
• Why
• What
• How we are educating?
Setting the scene – more of the same?
14
• Challenges for education policy makers increase
– Supporting the expansion of the system
– Ensuring quality
– Securing equitable access and opportunities
– Meeting ever growing expectations
• But in very difficult times
– Deepening social problems
– Doing more with less
– Intensifying political and ideological differences
Challenges may seduce policy-makers to
stick to the current model
15
EDUCATION GETTING OUT OF TUNE?
16
• The race with technology and the changing
nature of the skills demand
Where is education getting out of tune?
17
“~50% of US jobs potentially
automatable”
Oxford Martin Study 2014
18
19
Changing skills demand
35
40
45
50
55
60
65
70
1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2006 2009
Routine manual Nonroutine manual Routine cognitive
Nonroutine analytic Nonroutine interpersonal
Mean task input in percentiles of 1960 task distribution
• The race with technology and the changing
nature of the skills demand
• Social efficacy: will social protection systems
pay the price?
Where is education getting out of tune?
20
Percentage of low educated younger adults (25-34 year-
olds), by gender (2013)
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
45
50
55
60
Port
ug
al
Spa
in
Bra
zil
Denm
ark
Latv
ia
Esto
nia
Italy
Icela
nd
Gre
ece
Colo
mb
ia
Austr
alia
Norw
ay
Luxe
mb
ou
rg
Isra
el
Ne
the
rla
nds
Belg
ium
Irela
nd
Fin
land
OE
CD
ave
rag
e
Cana
da
Un
ited
Sta
tes
Fra
nce
Slo
ven
ia
Pola
nd
Ru
ssia
n…
Sw
ede
n
Ne
w Z
eala
nd
Ch
ile
Un
ited
Kin
gd
om
Hung
ary
Germ
any
Czech R
ep
ub
lic
Kore
a
Slo
vak R
epu
blic
Me
xic
o
Sw
itze
rla
nd
Austr
ia
Turk
ey
Men Women%
21
Increasing social expenditure
22
• The race with technology and the changing
nature of the skills demand
• Social efficacy: will social protection systems
pay the price?
• Relevance of curricula – knowledge, cognitive
skills, social and emotional skills, values
Where is education getting out of tune?
23
Curriculum: What should
students learn?
Technology
Values
Democracy
Social change
Jobs
Science
Interdependency
Relevance of curricula
Social
integration
Fundamentalisms
Intolerance
Inequality
Families
Climate change
Future of work
Media
Financial crisis
Welfare state
Globalisation
Complexity
Citizenship
Jobless growth
Innovation
Pluralism
Knowledge
explosion
Youth
unemployment
Violence
24
Living in the world
Personal and social responsibility
Life and careers
Citizenship
Fairness
Integrity
Respect
Self-awareness
Courage
Empathy
Resilience
Adaptability
Curiosity Initiative
Leadership
25
• But, most importantly, are our education systems
really tuned to
– Support learning?
– Foster social learning?
– Create learning societies?
• Or are we merely maintaining credentialism, systems of selecting,
screening and signalling people?
Where is education getting out of tune?
26
• Principles of learning:
– Learners at the centre
– The social nature of learning
– Emotions are integral to learning
– Recognising individual differences
– Stretching all students
– Assessment for learning
– Building horizontal connections
• We know which road to follow!
The roadmap of innovating learning
27
From what we know from learning research, teaching and learning environments and pedagogies should be:
• Learner-centred: highly focused on learning but not as an
alternative to the key role for teachers
• Structured and well-designed: needs careful design and
high professionalism alongside inquiry & autonomous learning
• Profoundly personalised: acutely sensitive to individual and
group differences and offering tailored feedback
• Inclusive: such sensitivity to individual and group differences
means they are fundamentally inclusive
• Social: learning is effective in group settings, when learners
collaborate, and when there is a connection to community.
28
Redefining teaching and learning
• Learning is the key to creating learning societies
that can address challenges and to liberating
humanity’s problem-solving potential
• Innovative environments and conditions will be
necessary for individuals and societies to
succeed in higher, better, deeper learning
• How can we create innovation ecosystems in
education to make that happen?
• What role can OER play?
Innovating learning
29
HOW CAN OER HELP?
30
OER
New forms of learning
Teachers’ collaboration
Public & private costs
Quality of resources
Distribution of resources
Barriers to learning
31
Relative strength of policy benefits of OER
32
OER
New forms of learning
Teachers’ collaboration
Public & private costs
Quality of resources
Distribution of resources
Barriers to learning
33
• In reality, most OER are content-focused, to be
used in existing educational settings
• At best, augmenting the teaching-learning
process and the resources used
• But 21st century learning requires a focus on
more innovative skills development and
pedagogies
• The relevance of OER lies not only in the quality
of content, but also the quality of the learning it
facilitates
1. Fostering 21st century learning
34
• Changing the role of learners from passive
consumers to active producers
• Fostering peer-to-peer learning
• Stimulating problem-based learning
• Enriching learning resources through
collaborative practice
• Enhancing the social and emotional context of
learning
• …
How can OER support innovative
pedagogies?
35
OER
New forms of learning
Teachers’ collaboration
Public & private costs
Quality of resources
Distribution of resources
Barriers to learning
36
• ICT technology and the ways to use them in a
productive way in teaching and learning cited by
teachers as one of the most important needs of
professional development
• Professional collaboration is still the most
contentious and difficult dimension of
professionalism among teachers
2. Fostering teachers’ professional
development
37
Professional collaboration still the most
contentious aspect of professional growth
1.00
2.00
3.00
4.00
5.00
6.00
Shared vision Focus on studentlearning
Reflection De-privatisation ofpractice
Collaborativeactivities -exchange
Collaborativeactivities - teach
jointly
Me
an
fa
cto
r sco
re
Professional learning community
Belgium (Fl.)
Belgium (Fl.) profile A: 80% of teachers in Belgium (Fl.)
Belgium (Fl.) profile B: 13% of teachers in Belgium (Fl.)
Belgium (Fl.) profile C: 8% of teachers in Belgium (Fl.)
38
TALIS 2008
• Training and professional development for
teachers on using OER
• Using OER in teacher training and teacher
professional development
• Collaborative production of OER
• Stimulating teachers in reusing, revising,
remixing and redistributing of OER
• …
How can OER support teachers’ professional
development?
39
HOW CAN EDUCATION POLICIES SUPPORT OER?
40
41
Governments’ support of OER through policy
instruments - coverage
Out of 33 countries, 25 (76%) reported having a
government policy to support OER production and use
Source: CERI/OECD government survey
Policy support
Provision of OER and repositories
Communities of practice among
teachers
Framework conditions of educational settings
Evidence-based research for policy &
practice
How can educational policies support OER?
42
• Policy helps to establish repositories and supports the
provision of open licence materials.
• Policy helps the establishment of communities of
practices within the teaching body, to encourage
production and use of OER.
• Policy can change the framework conditions of formal
educational settings, by modifying rules, promoting new
tools and reassigning the division of labour.
• More research is necessary to better understand the
potential and the usage of OER for policy and practice
43
Governments’ policy support found in 4 key
areas
FINAL COMMENTS
44
• Being ‘open’ is not going to be a sufficient condition
for OER to have transformative impact
• Ultimately, the systemic impact of OER will depend
on the contribution it makes to improving teaching
and learning and to facilitating 21st century skills
development
• Content and pedagogy are not distinct but interact
• OER should be able to exploit and demonstrate its
intrinsic superiority over proprietary materials in their
substantive quality, but also in their capacity for
pedagogical innovation
Some conclusions and final comments
45