Book Review: Guidelines on the Development of Open Educational Resources Policies

Abstract

Reviewed by: Irem Demirbag and Sedef Sezgin, Anadolu University UNESCO and the Commonwealth of Learning (COL) have published these guidelines as a joint effort. They include steps for evaluating, assessing, designing, and implementing OER initiatives and policies. It is comprised of seven chapters, including the concept of OER; policy visions; frameworks; masterplans; implementation plans; and launching strategies. It also includes the purpose, background information, and references, with practical examples. At the end of each chapter, specific tasks are set for the policymaker to help develop a final OER policy. In Chapter 1, the concept of open educational resources (OER) is provided, and the resources are placed in the context of achieving the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG 4): Education For All. Chapter 2 outlines the educational challenges to achieving SDG4, such as expanding access, enhancing inclusion and diversity, promoting gender equality, supporting high quality education, and providing opportunities for lifelong learning. To deal with these challenges, the authors present across-the-board solutions. It then discusses the reasons or ideas for using OER to tackle the complexities of teaching and learning systems, as well as enhancing or even transforming education. Chapter 3 presents the principles of a policy's scope and scale, determines the level at which the policy is to be set, and identifies the areas of the education system that will be included in the policy. This chapter also provides a framework for guiding decisions on scope and scale, and addresses policy choices regarding possible regulatory requirements as well as other resources to aid OER implementations. Chapter 4 introduces four key strategic areas where there are significant gaps that need to be addressed. These strategic areas include the current knowledge level of stakeholders, providing learning materials, possible technical and regulatory barriers to the use of OER, and the type and content of training and support for teachers and instructors.