Openness has a long history as a core value in higher education. The use of the qualifier “open” reflects an intentional approach to ensure educational access, inclusivity and equity for all learners. The term “open educational practices” or OEP has been in use since 2007 when it first emerged in the context of research projects exploring how OER could make a difference in teaching and learning (Andrade et al., 2011; Ehlers, 2011; Geser, 2007). The concept of OEP was useful in shifting the focus from resources to practices and processes, thus highlighting the value of learners and teachers engaging in knowledge creation and sharing as collaborative pedagogical praxis (Beetham et al., 2012; Karunanayaka & Naidu, 2020; Koseoglu & Bozkurt, 2018). As noted by Hodgkinson-Williams (2010): “The move to incorporate ‘practice’ in the definition signifies the acknowledgement that content disembedded from its context is difficult to adapt without some understanding of the pedagogical and epistemological assumptions underlying the creation of the resource” (p. 6) 

Although the concept of OEP initially arose from projects exploring the use of OER, OEP is increasingly a “multidimensional construct” (Brandenberger, 2022). Today, based on empirical studies across diverse contexts, it is recognized that not all forms of OEP necessarily involve the creation, use and/or reuse of OER (Beetham, et al., 2012; Cronin, 2017; Czerniewicz, et al., 2017; Nascimbeni & Burgos, 2016). “Expansive conceptualisations” of OEP recognise that OEP may include open content, but also allow for multiple entry points to and avenues of openness, e.g. using open tools and spaces for engagement, collaboration, publishing and/or professional development (Cronin & MacLaren, 2018; Paskevicius & Irvine, 2021). Indeed, as there is no single evident way in which practices can be ‘open’, the use of the term OEP can instead signal the intention to both highlight and interrogate the nature of any educational opening in context (Havemann, 2020).

An increasing focus in OEP research and practice is the recognition that openness itself does not ensure equity. Openness is not a panacea. Awareness, intention, and effort are required to ensure that OEP are respectful of differences, truly inclusive, and equitable (Croft & Brown, 2020; Hollich, 2022; Veletsianos, 2021). As noted by the editors of Open at the Margins (Bali et al., 2020a): “we are cautious about rhetoric concerning equity, diversity, and inclusion, asserting that these only have meaning when concomitant processes are genuinely embraced to avoid further marginalizing the marginalized” (para. 6). A number of frameworks, models, and analyses have been developed to support educators in conceptualizing, designing, and implementing OEP using a social justice perspective. Most draw on established social justice theories (e.g. Fraser, 2005; Gidley et al., 2010). These include Arinto, Hodgkinson-Williams and Trotter’s (2017) model of OER engagement and associated levels of social inclusion; Lambert’s (2018) framework of social justice principles applied to open education; Hodgkinson-Williams and Trotter’s (2018) social justice framework for understanding OER/OEP in the Global South; and Bali et al.’s (2020) framing of OEP from a social justice perspective.

Developing and implementing open education policies is an important aspect of OEP at a structural level. The UNESCO (2019) OER Recommendation called on governments and educational institutions to create supportive open education policies to foster OEP, e.g. to support open licensing of publicly funded educational materials, to enable the use and adaptation of OER, to create communities of practice, and to incentivize "open teaching practices" (Huang et al., 2020). Whereas at governmental levels policymaking suggests legislation and funding, at an institutional or organizational level, policy can exist in official, documented forms, but also in forms which are more informal and dynamic (and therefore, more vulnerable to the winds of change), e.g. through project funding, existence of support roles, or accepted norms of practice. Building on the UNESCO Recommendation and other research, recent work has focused on the need to develop enabling open education policies, with a focus on co-creation (Atenas et al., 2022).

The Covid-19 pandemic and subsequent campus closures (beginning March 2020) exacerbated and further revealed issues of inequality, particularly digital inequality. Influential organisations called on the global education community to share educational resources as OER in order to “support educators, students and decision-makers” (ALT, 2020) and to help build “more inclusive, sustainable and resilient knowledge societies” (UNESCO, 2020) during a time of crisis. Reports on the use of OER during the pandemic are mixed, with some reports of increased use (CoL, 2022) and others indicating a lack of evidence of formal adoption (Lederman, 2021). There was, however, an observed rise in the use of informal OEP in the form of educators sharing questions and ideas with one another (Havemann & Roberts, 2021).

In summary, the core principle of open education is ‘education as a common good’, i.e. quality education for all. The use of OEP, in all its forms, can promote shifts in mindsets and actions towards openness, thus contributing towards quality education for all, including the systemic changes required to support this. 

Related Terms

Open Pedagogy

Open Educational Resources 

References

Andrade, A., Ehlers, U.-D., Caine, A., Carneiro, R., Conole, G., Kairamo, A.-K., … Holmberg, C. (2011). Beyond OER: Shifting focus to open educational practices (pp. 1–191). Open Education Quality Initiative. https://oerknowledgecloud.org/sites/oerknowledgecloud.org/files/OPAL2011.pdf

Arinto, P. B., Hodgkinson-Williams, C., & Trotter, H. (2017). OER and OEP in the Global South: Implications and recommendations for social inclusion. In C. Hodgkinson-Williams & P. B. Arinto (Eds.), Adoption and Impact of OER in the Global South. African Minds, International Development Research Centre & Research on Open Educational Resources. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.1043829

Association for Learning Technology. (2020). Open Covid Pledge for Education. https://www.alt.ac.uk/about-alt/what-we-do/open-covid-pledge-education

Atenas, J., Havemann, L., Cronin, C., Rodés, V., Lesko, I., Stacey, P., Feliu-Torruella, M., Buck, E., Amiel, T., Orlic, D., Stefanelli, C., & Villar Onrubia, D. (2022). Defining and developing ‘enabling’ open education policies in higher education. UNESCO Policy Brief, World Higher Education Conference 2022. https://oars.uos.ac.uk/2481/

Bali, M., Cronin, C., Czerniewicz, L., DeRosa, R., & Jhangiani, R. (2020a). Introduction. In M. Bali, C. Cronin, L. Czerniewicz, R. DeRosa, & R. Jhangiani (Eds.) Open at the Margins: Critical Perspectives on Open Education. Rebus Community. https://press.rebus.community/openatthemargins/

Bali, M., Cronin, C., & Jhangiani, R. (2020b). Framing open educational practices from a social justice perspective. Journal of Interactive Media in Education, 2020(1). http://doi.org/10.5334/jime.565

Beetham, H., Falconer, I., McGill, L., & Littlejohn, A. (2012). Open practices: Briefing paper. JISC. https://oersynth.pbworks.com/w/file/fetch/58444186/Open%20Practices%20briefing%20paper.pdf

Brandenburger, B. (2022). A multidimensional and analytical perspective on Open Educational Practices in the 21st century. Frontiers in Education (p. 636). https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/feduc.2022.990675/full

Commonwealth of Learning. (2022). Open Educational Resources in the Commonwealth 2021. http://oasis.col.org/handle/11599/4009

Croft, B., & Brown, M. (2020). Inclusive open education: presumptions, principles, and practices. Distance Education, 41(2), 156-170. https://doi.org/10.1080/01587919.2020.1757410

Cronin, C. (2017). Openness and praxis: Exploring the use of open educational practices in higher education. The International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning, 18(5). http://dx.doi.org/10.19173/irrodl.v18i5.3096

Cronin, C., & MacLaren, I. (2018). Conceptualising OEP: A review of theoretical and empirical literature in Open Educational Practices. Open Praxis, 10(2). https://doi.org/10.5944/openpraxis.10.2.825

Czerniewicz, L., Deacon, A., Glover, M., & Walji, S. (2017). MOOC-making and open educational practices. Journal of Computing in Higher Education, 29, 81–97. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12528-016-9128-7

Czerniewicz, L. (2018). Inequality as higher education goes online. In: N. Bonderup Dohn, S. Cranmer, JA. Sime, M. de Laat, T. Ryberg (Eds.), Networked Learning: Research in Networked Learning. Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-74857-3_6

Ehlers, U.-D. (2011). Extending the territory: From Open Educational Resources to Open Educational Practices. Journal of Open, Flexible, and Distance Learning, 15(2). http://www.jofdl.nz/index.php/JOFDL/article/view/64

Fraser, N. (1995). From redistribution to recognition? Dilemmas of justice in a “post-socialist” age. New Left Review, 1(212). https://newleftreview.org/I/212/nancy-fraser-from-redistribution-to-recognition-dilemmas-of-justice-in-a-post-socialist-age

Geser, G. (2007). Open Educational Practices and Resources: OLCOS Roadmap 2012. Salzburg Research / EduMedia Group. http://www.olcos.org/cms/upload/docs/olcos_roadmap.pdf

Gidley, J., Hampson, G. P., Wheeler, L., & Bereded-Samuel, E. (2010). Social inclusion: Context, theory and practice. The Australasian Journal of University Community Engagement, 5(1), 6-36.

Havemann, L. (2020). Open in the evening: Openings and closures in an ecology of practices. In D. Conrad & P. Prinsloo (Eds.), Open(ing) Education: Theory and Practice (pp. 329–344). Brill | Sense. https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004422988_015

Havemann, L., & Roberts, V. (2021). Pivoting open? Pandemic pedagogy and the search for openness in the viral learning environment. Journal of Interactive Media in Education, 2021(1), 1–11. https://doi.org/10.5334/JIME.676

Hodgkinson-Williams, C. (2010). Benefits and challenges of OER for higher education institutions Commonwealth of Learning (COL). http://hdl.handle.net/11599/3042

Hodgkinson-Williams, C. A., & Trotter, H. (2018). A social justice framework for understanding open educational resources and practices in the Global South. Journal of Learning for Development, 5(3). https://doi.org/10.56059/jl4d.v5i3.312

Hollich, S. (2022). The unrealized promise of OER: An exploration of copyright, the open movement, and social justice. In C. J. Ivory & A. Pashia, A. (Eds.), Using open educational resources to promote social justice. Association of College and Research Libraries. https://eduq.info/xmlui/handle/11515/38685

Huang, R., Liu, D., Tlili, A., Knyazeva, S., Chang, T., Zhang, X., Burgos, D., Jemni, M., Zhang, M., Zhuang, R., & Holotescu, C. (2020). Guidance on open educational practices during school closures: Utilizing OER under COVID-19 pandemic in line with UNESCO OER Recommendation. Smart Learning Institute of Beijing Normal University. https://iite.unesco.org/publications/guidance-on-open-educational-practices-during-covid-19-pandemic/ 

Karunanayaka, S. P., & Naidu, S. (2020). Ascertaining impacts of capacity building in open educational practices. Distance Education, 41(2), 279-302. https://doi.org/10.1080/01587919.2020.1757406

Koseoglu, S., & Bozkurt, A. (2018). An exploratory literature review on open educational practices, Distance Education, 39(4). https://doi.org/10.1080/01587919.2018.1520042

Koseoglu, S., Bozkurt, A., & Havemann, L. (2020). Critical questions for open educational practices. Distance Education, 41(2). https://doi.org/10.1080/01587919.2020.1775341

Lambert, S. R. (2018). Changing our (dis) course: A distinctive social justice aligned definition of open education. Journal of Learning for Development, 5(3). https://doi.org/10.56059/jl4d.v5i3.290

Lederman, D. (2021, March 17). Awareness of open educational resources grows, but adoption doesn’t. Inside Higher Ed. https://www.insidehighered.com/digital-learning/article/2021/03/18/pandemic-didnt-speed-adoption-open-educational-resources-outlook

Nascimbeni, F., & Burgos, D. (2016). In search for the Open Educator: Proposal of a definition and a framework to increase openness adoption among university educators. The International Review of Research in Open and Distributed Learning, 17(6). https://dx.doi.org/10.19173/irrodl.v17i6.2736

Paskevicius, M., & Irvine, V. (2021). Theoretical and methodological approaches for investigating open educational practices. The Open/Technology in Education, Society, and Scholarship Association Journal, 1(2), 1-19. https://doi.org/10.18357/otessaj.2021.1.2.11

Strunk, K. K., & Betties, J. S. (2019). Using critical theory in educational research. In K. K. Strunk & L. A. Locke (Eds.), Research methods for social justice and equity in education (pp. 71–79). Palgrave Macmillan. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-05900-2_6

UNESCO. (2019). Draft Recommendation on Open Educational Resources. UNESCO General Conference, 40th. UNESCO Publications. https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000370936

UNESCO. (2020). Call for Joint Action: Supporting Learning and Knowledge Sharing through Open Educational Resources. UNESCO Publications. https://en.unesco.org/sites/default/files/covid19_joint_oer_call_en.pdf

Veletsianos, G. (2021). Open educational resources: Expanding equity or reflecting and furthering inequities? Educational Technology Research and Development, 69, 407–410. https://doi-org.tudublin.idm.oclc.org/10.1007/s11423-020-09840-y

Community Artifacts

National Forum for the Enhancement of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education. (2021). Using OER and OEP for teaching and learning. https://open.teachingandlearning.ie/

Open Education Network. (n.d.). Certificate in open educational practices. https://open.umn.edu/oen/certificate-in-oep