First, let’s talk about some risks of openness….
Leraning by doing is a good approach, as they say. However, sometimes, this involves making mistakes along the way. When it comes to issues like using open resources, some caution should be taken. I learned this through my research project once, in a not-so-nice way:
During the beginning times of on-line web surveys, we were going to gather data for a research project, and without knowing it, planned on using a survey system that did not have all that secure servers that they stored the data on. The survey had been recommended to us by an IT assistant at our university, who, I guess, was not either yet that well aquianted with the emerging world of on-line surveys. Luckily, nothing severe happened as we had not collected any data yet, but it was embarrassing enough when we received an e-mail from one of the presumptive research participants, notifying us that he will not fill in our survey as long as it is provided though the non-sercured on-line service, with servers somewhere abroad.
Quite embarassing, to be a univeristy researcher, who should be doing things ”by the book”, and to be notified of possible misconduct by a research participant. So off we went to figure things out, and re-construct our surveys though the university’s own system. Before this I had no clue that such things as web surveys were stored on specific servers, I just though that everything was out there in some unidentified ”world-wide-web”, and that only I – the password holder – had acess to the data on my account. How foolish, but with hindsight, quite a good lesson too. Now I will never make the same mistake again, and am alwayd very careful of what data I store and where.
Indeed, when it comes to using Open Education Resources (OER), William Bates gives some specific recommendations in this regard. In light of my above-mentioned example, the following points are good to keep in mind:
- Using online systems that provide password protected access to registered students and instructors.
- Contract agreements between an educational institution and cloud service providers can ensure security and back-ups. Some universities also have their own servers – it turned out that my university does.
And on a more positive note!
In my role as a coordinator for sustainable development in education at my university, I am, however, delighted about many aspects of OER. Particulary, if we consider education, including the work time and materials and funding that are put into it, as a resource, OER can be seen as a resource-conserving effort, which in turn can result in concrete resource savings in terms of time, materials, travel and money. This is very importnat in the current times of global resource over-use!
I am quite inspired by what Alastair Creelman speks of in this webinar on OER: This of the opportuinities that would open, if for example universities shared their knowledge and courses, instead of, for example, every university having their own, separate course on general topics such as scientific writing!
