Presentation of the Globalizing OpenupEd Project Sat 7th June, 2014 within the 2014 ACDE Annual Conference, Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe

1. Globalizing OpenupEd
Explorative Leadership
Workshop
Fred Mulder Abel Caine
UNESCO/ICDE Chair in OER at OUNL UNESCO / Paris
(former Rector OUNL 2000 – 2010) Programme Specialist in OER
Chair EADTU’s OpenupEd Initiative
1
ACDE/UNESCO/EADTU
Workshop@ACDE Conference
7 June 2014
Victoria Falls / Zimbabwe

2. 2
Program
& Goal

3. Page 3
Program
1 Welcome and main goal of the Workshop
(ACDE President)
2 Intro: Why OpenupEd and why Globalization?
OER, MOOCs, and Open(ing up) Education as global movements
(Fred Mulder & Abel Caine)
3 Towards a vision and way forward for Africa with MOOCs (and OER)
(Director ACDE Database)
4 OpenupEd MOOCs in Europe: characteristics and state of play
(Fred Mulder)
5 Vision behind and opportunities for Globalizing OpenupEd
(Abel Caine)
3 Globalizing

4. Page 4
Program, continued …
6 Africa on the move with MOOCs, a few examples
(to be chosen from: OUT, UNISA, NOUN, AVU, OUS, ZOU)
7 Globalizing OpenupEd in Africa and a role for ACDE?
(Discussion moderated by ACDE President & Fred Mulder)
8 From Workshop to Work plan
(Wrap-up moderated by Abel Caine)
9 Closing
(Fred Mulder / Primrose Kurasha)
4 Globalizing

5. Page 5
Goal
Reflect on the need and urgency of a
strategic response to the global MOOCs movement
from the global OUs community and institutional networks
Explore the opportunities of such a special flavour
in the global MOOCs movement through a sub-Saharan
initiative linked to the European OpenupEd MOOCs initiative
and to similar moves in other regions (‘Globalizing OpenupEd’)
Give guidance to a Work plan towards establishing
your own flavoured and profiled OpenupEd alike,
to be developed in the follow-up of the Workshop by a team of
key actors from different African OUs under the ACDE leadership
5 Globalizing

6. Page 6
Why OpenupEd
and why
Globalization?
6 Globalizing

7. Page 7
Higher Education: two worlds
INNOVATIVE /
‘OPEN’
CONVENTIONAL /
‘CLOSED’
Open and Distance Learning / ODL
Lifelong Open Flexible / LOF learning
OUs (incl. DTUs)
Variety of Associations / Consortia
ICDE EADTU AAOU ACDE …
Conferences Seminars Taskforces
One
Century(+)
Classroom ‘campus’-based learning
Young students & Fixed in time/place
Mainstream, wide variety in focus:
research/education, large/small, …
IAU EUA AUAP AAU …
Conferences Seminars Taskforces
Many
Centuries
7 Globalizing

8. Page 8
Open Higher Education: two worlds
CLASSICAL /
ESTABLISHED
INNOVATIVE /
EMERGING
Open and Distance Learning / ODL
Lifelong Open Flexible / LOF learning
OUs (incl. DTUs)
Variety of Associations / Consortia
ICDE EADTU AAOU ACDE
Conferences Seminars Taskforces
One
Century(+)
Open Educational Resources / OER
Massive Open Online Courses / MOOCs
Wide variety of Initiatives
MIT OERu P2Pu edX Coursera
OCWC CC Hewlett F. OpenEd
Communities Forums Conferences
One
Decade(+)
8 Globalizing

9. Page 9
Three existential (naughty) questions
1 Are we meanwhile thrown back
into the ‘conventional’ world indeed?
2 Are we too much ‘blinded’ by feelings
of contextual uncertainty, risks, and threats?
3 Shouldn’t we get back to our ‘roots’ and
embrace OER/MOOCs as ‘fundamental’ to our model?
3 X YES, …
THIS THE CAUSE
9 Globalizing

10. Page 10
Conception @ 2012 EADTU Conf.
see below last keynote slide: OUs should …
… seriously consider a transition to become
(the) European OER Universities
… enter the MOOCs world with EU-OU style MOOCs
which will clearly have more added value for learners
than the rather basic US-based MOOCs
Major profiling qualities:
[high-quality learning materials] [for independent learners]
[no rigid schedules] [certification?]
[different languages] [specific European themes]
[………]
Recommended paper Sir John Daniel:
Making Sense of MOOCs: Musings in a Maze
of Myth, Paradox and Possibility

11. Page 11
Alert @ 2012 ICDE SCOP Meeting
see below last keynote slide regarding
recommendations for ICDE Strategic Plan
11
OuE (&OER) is fundamental to the OUs:
It is not enough nor adequate to just include it in
Strategic objective 3 (“To support the development
of new methodologies and technologies”)
European OUs prepared to launch a joint
MOOCs initiative (MOUCs/iMOOCs, start 2013):
Do not stand aside: ICDE members in other regions
might join in a decentralized model
Could serve all 5 Strategic objectives

12. Page 12
Launch of OpenupEd @ April 2013
see slide below reflecting this …
Joint press release EADTU & European Commission
European values: Equity, Quality, and Diversity
> Learner at the Centre <
> High-quality Learning Materials <
> Self-study Model <
> Diversity in Language and in Culture <
In Tradition of acclaimed Open Universities model
First and so far only pan-European MOOCs initiative
12

13. EU launch of ‘OuE’ @ Sept 2013
> ‘Opening up Education’: Finally but Timely <
> Relevant and Significant <
> Phrasing plus Budget (2014-2020) <
> Broad Scope (DGs CONNECT + EAC) <
Innovative teaching and learning for all through ICT
Reshaping/modernizing EU education through OER
Digital competencies, infrastructures, interoperability
Equity, quality, visibility, licensing, certification
> Concerted effort / integrated approach <
13

14. Terminology: ‘OuE’ well-chosen
(note: OpenupEd has been derived from OuE)
Open(ing up) Education (OuE)
seems a subtle change to OE
but is pretty relevant …
> OuE underlines the dynamics and the process <
(there is no fixed model for education over time)
> OuE can adequately accommodate diversity <
(there is no single ideal model for education)
Brings in Nuance
14

15. Page 15
Call @ 2013 ICDE Conference China
see below conclusion slide panel contribution
Do we allow our institutions and their good work
for learners and society to be ‘DISRUPTED’?
> RE-ACTIVE strategy <
OR
Do we rediscover our mission and
fully utilize and profile the power of ‘OPEN’?
> PRO-ACTIVE strategy <
Five years after ICDE’s
‘Golden Combi’ Report …
(and mind the MOOCs!)15

16. Page 16
Way forward …
Reaching out to open universities in Africa, Asia and Latin
America to possibly start partnerships similar to OpenupEd
But with their own flavour and profile, and working in a
global network of linked initiatives from those regions
First contacts at the ICDE World Conference in China
and the ICDE SCOP Meeting in Lisbon: much resonance
UNESCO has become involved (including a labeled EU budget)
Organize explorative leadership workshops
in the ACDE Conference (June 2014) and
prior to the AAOU Conference (Oct 2014)
Emerging contacts with AIESAD
16 Globalizing

17. Page 17
OpenupEd
MOOCs
in Europe
17 Globalizing

18. Page 18
OpenupEd partnership
At the launch, from the EU:
France, Italy, Lithuania, the Netherlands,
Portugal, Slovakia, Spain, the UK
Outside the EU, from:
Russia, Turkey, Israel
Planning to join, from the EADTU membership:
Cyprus, Denmark, Estonia, France (+1),
Greece, Ireland, Poland (2x), Slovenia, Spain (+1)
Open to other partners: 20 requests worldwide
18 Globalizing

19. Page 19
OpenupEd courses
Around 40 at the start (now around 175)
Wide variety in subjects and level
12 Languages
Scheduled or self-paced
20 to 200 hours of study
Recognition options:
certificates of completion/participation, or badges,
or paid for formal credit / ECTS (>100 courses)
19 Globalizing

20. Page 20
OpenupEd common features
Openness to learners (in OUs tradition)
Digital openness (e.g. OER-based)
Learner-centred approach
Independent learning
Media-supported interaction
Recognition options
Quality focus
Spectrum of diversity
Not meant to be a strict order
but rather to give general guidance
20 Globalizing

21. Page 21
OpenupEd, a decentralized model …
Institutions themselves are leading
OpenupEd central communication portal,
a referatory to the institutional platforms
Driven by service to learners & society
(rather than by revenue)
Positioned in the public domain (not-for-profit)
(rather than the private sector)
21 Globalizing

22. Page 22
… but centralized for quality
Branding: commonality in our eight features
(contributing to opening up education)
OpenupEd quality label requirement
(launched Feb 2014 – CC licensed)
Continuous monitoring
Research and evaluation
(common surveys; longitudinal)
22 Globalizing

23. Page 23
OpenupEd: benefits for partners
Strong and distinctive quality brand
Collective exposure beyond national borders
Visibility and marketing potential
Opportunity to join cross-national projects with external funding
Opportunity to engage with the expertise and experience in the
OpenupEd partnership: (i) development of MOOCs (ii) operate
on a partner’s platform (iii) institutional evaluation & monitoring
Annual state-of-the-art meetings (in association’s conferences)
Explore further extension of ‘opening up education’ at institution
Globally linked with similar partnerships in other regions
23 Globalizing

24. 24
Thanks for
your attention!
fred.mulder@ou.nl
a.caine@unesco.org
darco.jansen@eadtu.eu
Globalizing