In my reflections on Open Educational Practices (OEP) this week, it became clear that OEP is more commonly discussed in higher education but an abyss exists in terms of OEP in K-12 contexts. de los Arcos et al. (2016) confirmed my suspicions and found that over half of the school teachers surveyed in their study had never seen a CC logo or did not know what the CC logo meant. While the pandemic certainly acted as a catalyst for change in terms of best practices for learning in digital environments, Tang et al. (2021) also found that awareness of and comfort with OEP continued to be a barrier to its widespread adoption in K-12 contexts.
Thus it stands to reason that while OEP has a more established base in higher education, there is a need for it to be taken up as a movement in K-12. The benefits of OEP adoption are numerous and include the ability to personalize learning, engage with meaningful and relevant content, encourage collaboration, and increase access to educational resources (de los Arcos et al., 2016). Tang et al., (2021) noted that “open educational practices (OEP) have been integrated in teacher preparation and professional development programs to increase pre-service and in-service teachers’ awareness of OER” (p. 3210). However, it is essential that universities question the established norms of teacher education programs and further prioritize embracing concepts such as critical pedagogy and OER. Until then, change will only occur in scattered pockets of grassroots movements prompted by individual teachers who recognize the necessity of challenging the status quo.
References
de los Arcos, B., Farrow, R., Pitt, R., Weller, M., & McAndrew, P. (2016). Adapting the curriculum: How K-12 teachers perceive the role of open educational resources. Journal of Online Learning Research, 2(1), 23-40. https://www.learntechlib.org/primary/p/151664/
Tang, H., Lin, Y. J., & Qian, Y. (2021). Improving K-12 teachers’ acceptance of open educational resources by open educational practices: A mixed methods inquiry. Educational Technology Research and Development, 69(6), 3209-3232. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11423-021-10046-z
Thank you so much for your reflection, Amber! You are absolutely right. Open educational resources and practices (OER/P) are more commonly discussed in higher education. But, this is primarily because online learning is more prevalent in higher education. I hope that teachers and trainers from various educational settings can look to higher education research and practices and see how they may adapt OER/P to their unique context. Of course, HE and K-12 education will have some major differences with regard to curriculum, mandatory requirements, and the overall maturity level of students. However, as you also mentioned, the potential benefits that OER/P can bring to online education are hard to ignore. OEP can contribute to more inclusive classrooms, as students actively shape the knowledge commons and reflect on who is considered an authority or a creator, including themselves (DeRosa & Jihiangiani, 2017; Brown & Croft, 2020). It can also relieve financial pressures, increase digital access to education, and decrease the workload of teachers. For more information on OER/P for K–12 Learning, I hope you will find the following resources helpful:
Blomgren, C. & Roberts, V. (2017). Benefits of OER for K–12 learning [Podcast]. Athabasca University. http://bolt.athabascau.ca/index.php/podcast/benefits-of-oer-for-k-12-learning/
Cavanaugh, C. S., Barbour, M. K., & Clark, T. (2009). Research and practice in K–12 online learning: A review of open access literature. The International Review of Research in Open and Distributed Learning, 10(1). https://doi.org/10.19173/irrodl.v10i1.607
Roberts, V. (2020). OEP to expand high school learning environments, spaces & experiences [YouTube]. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3jh7E3pLC_Q