Oer11 cathedral bazaar

Is Open Education between the Cathedral and the Bazaar?: the promise and pitfalls of borrowing models and metaphors for the OER community
R. John Robertson (1) and Lorna Campbell (1), Phil Barker (2), and Li Yuan (3) JISC CETIS
Presentation at OER 11, Manchester, May 11th 2011
1 Centre for Academic Practice and Learning Enhancement, University of Strathclyde, 2 Institute for Computer Based Learning, Heriot-Watt University, 3 Institute for Cybernetic Education, University of Bolton
This work is licenced under a Creative Commons Licence. Individual Images in this presentation may have different licences.

overview
Some context
Models and metaphors
Examples

Context: JISC CETIS
JISC CETIS is a JISC Innovation Support Centre. We provide advice to the UK Higher and Post-16 Education sectors on the development and use of educational technology and standards through:
participating in standards bodies
providing community forums for sharing experience about educational technologies and interoperability standards
providing strategic advice to JISC and supporting JISC development programmes
3

Context: UK OER and more
UKOER programme: Phase 2 of the HEFCE-funded Open Educational Resources (OER) programme runs between August 2010 and August 2011 (£5 million funding)
Other OER work in the UK and globally as well as other related technical developments
4

The impact of models and metaphors
models and metaphors shape how we think
for example, the Cloud

The book
http://oreilly.com/catalog/9780596001087/
or
http://www.catb.org/~esr/writings/cathedral-bazaar/
Image from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Cathedral-and-the-Bazaar-book-cover.jpg - Original image: Copyright all rights reserved O’Reilly Media

models & metaphors in the OER world
What examples are there of models and metaphors connected to in OER?
Differences and similarities
The following is a brief, incomplete, and partially serious look at some popular models and metaphors considering, what they offer and some of their limits and problems

The music industry
OER initiatives can model themselves on some parts of the music industry.
They can make money by selling services and stuff around the content they give away for free

The music industry
Pros
Clear idea of paid for services to generate substantial income based on released content
Model appears intuitive and accessible to many
Con
Very few bands can make a sustainable income from this approach
Those that can are mostly already well established
Many bands either fail out right or have a very limited shelf life

Open source software development
OER initiatives can model themselves on open source development techniques and communities.
Using voluntary community input
Selling services around content

Open source software development
Pros
Clear idea of paid for, free, or community-supported services to generate substantial income based on openly released content
Familiar to educational technologists, developers, and those interested in technology more generally
Recognised ‘process’ for individuals to build demonstrable experience and reputation
Cons
Rate of failure of OSS projects (failure = unfinished and abandoned buggy code)
Difficulty in attracting and sustaining community input
Community input is often entirely self-motivated
Skills developed are ‘easy’ to test /accredit

Open Access initiatives
OER initiatives can model themselves on successful Open Access efforts in sharing preprints of scholarly works
Use existing institutional structures, skills, staff
Publicly funded stuff should be publicly available
Doesn’t prevent others making money with materials

Open Access initiatives
Pros
Relatively successful model set in an academic environment
Model has sustainability through ties to institutional priorities and use of existing infrastructure
Cons
Research materials and learning materials are very different (perceived value, shelf life)
Model and relationship with other forms of publishing still in flux

The shop window
OER initiatives can model themselves on shop windows / loss leaders.
They can provide free access to some content to get people in so that they make you money by paying for other stuff

The shop window
Pros
Application of proven commercial models of loss leaders and of advertising and using samples
Also provides an opportunity to enhance and promote institutional brand
Cons
Model does not need to be open just free
Always going to be a partial approach to sharing content
In academic sector, some value of giving away content known, risks unknown as yet

The free market
OER initiatives can offer institutions a competitive edge and allow them to demonstrate the excellence of their courses

The free market
Pros
Model partially reflects the context universities are in
Model will appeal to some universities and senior officers
Cons
Model likely to discourage reuse (we want our content out there)
Focus on competition likely to shape and restrict what content is released
The model may most appeal to the strong

The commune
OER and OE initiatives can operate in a self sustaining manner based on relationship rather than ownership

The commune
Pros
Model appeals to academics desire to share knowledge and teach
Model provides a ‘cause’ to join for altruistic reasons, out of commitment to your subject, or as a means to build reputation
Cons
Unclear how model is sustainable
Unclear how it relates to institutions
Unclear how model relates to accreditation works outside of institutions

The charity
OER and OE initiatives can fulfil part of an institutions’ social responsibility.
Institutions can attract charitable donations to promote access to education

The charity
Pros
Charitable funding model underpins much of early and large scale work releasing OER
For institutions, education as charitable act may appeal as it ties into local view of social responsibility and any relevant government policy around access to education (also fits shop window model)
Cons
Foundations have their own priorities and these have largely shifted from funding OER release
Appeal of charitable nature of OER is likely to be outweighed by required investment for many institutions

The lifetime member’s plan
Alumni subscribe to their institution after graduation/ or sponsor a particular course.
As materials are released they get ongoing access to services around the OER or some form of acknowledgement

The lifetime member’s plan
Pros
Alumni are an important source of additional income for universities
Ongoing access to resources for professional development may also act as a ‘shop window’
Cons
Role of alumni and their support for institution varies widely (by country and by institution)
Largely untested as a sustainable approach?

The cute kitten
Everyone likes cute kittens – OER are like cute kittens – everyone should like them
People make lolcats for the fun of it and share them; people may make OER for the same reasons

The cute kitten
Pros
Everyone likes cute kittens and the idea of OER is likely to have similar mass appeal
Cons
Even if something is good that does not make it sustainable
There may be a limit to how many kittens people need
It can be very hard to find a particular kitten

The Reformation
OER initiatives are like the Reformation – they offer a radical overhaul of education and the development of a flexible and individually oriented (rather than institutional) process of education

The Reformation
Pros
Many of those leading initiatives to develop OER do want radical change
Many OER initiatives treated suspiciously at first by institutions
Ties OER into an event that changed society
Cons
Potential to be a divisive metaphor for reasons unconnected to education
Likely to put off institutions
Blatantly ignores any historical understanding and unforeseen outcomes

To think about
What models and metaphors are you basing your OER initiative on?
How are you describing it when talking about it to academics/ managers/ others?
What are the implications of your models and metaphors for sustainability?

Questions
phil.barker@hw.ac.uk
robert.robertson@strath.ac.uk
lmc@strath.ac.uk
l.yuan@bolton.ac.uk
http://jisc.cetis.ac.uk/topic/oer
29

Oer11 cathedral bazaar

by R. John Robertson on May 16, 2011

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