[Oer-community] Introduction to the discussion

[rory]

  Kimberly,
Why is it so important that we have peer review for OERs? We have had 
proprietary learning content used for centuries with no peer review. Not 
all of it is "true" nor was it all worth sharing. Who decides what is 
worthy for proprietary content?
Answer: usually the teacher or the department;
How?  Ans: Usually by what is available. Or by the idiosnycracy of the 
instructor. Or, by a myriad of other methods.
Criteria? Ans: Usually none other than what is available and it seems 
like the same as what the instructor learned by. Or other reasons, few 
of them based on pedagogical considerations.

So, the answer for OERs may very well continue the same except that 
there is a growing movement for better pedagogy especially with using 
online OERs so there seems to be an improvement.  I think that 
improvement will continue, but we will still have poor quality content, 
but with the availability and access of more and more content, we will 
have more opportunity to choose and not be dependent on  one or two 
choices of availability, but a whole range, as will the students. If 
they don't like the teacher's choice they can find other materials on 
the same or a similar subject online.

Interesting!
All the best.
Rory


On 10-10-06 6:52 PM, Kimberly Wescott wrote:
>
> A Utopia worth striving for!.  I struggled a bit with "all" though.  
> I've actually been troubled for some time with the idea of peer review 
> for OER.  Not all that is created is accurate or "true" (for want of a 
> better word).  Nor is all that is created worth sharing - Aye, there's 
> the rub.  Who decides what is /worthy/?  How?  By what criteria?  I 
> know I may be leaping ahead a bit here.  But, this issue is deserving 
> of much debate I think.
>
> Kimberly
> Houston, TX
>
>

-- 
Rory McGreal
Associate VP Research
Athabasca University



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