University Teachers and Open Educational Resources: Case Studies from Latin America

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.19173/irrodl.v20i1.3853

Keywords:

Open Educational Resources, University Teachers, Higher Education, adoption, Latin America

Abstract

The Open Education movement has made efforts to systematise experiences and to evaluate the adoption of Open Educational Resources (OER). However, OER adoption is not part of the prevailing paradigm in higher education, both at the global level and in Latin America. This paper describes results of a study that analysed the social representations regarding the development, use, and reuse of OER by university teachers in their pedagogical practices. We conducted a study of 12 cases from Latin American universities using data analysis based on Grounded Theory. The results show that the use and reuse of OER lacks of public and institutional policies. The main agents are teachers organised in teams that support OER adoption. The reasons that encourage the creation of OER are mainly intrinsic, such as the pleasure derived from contributing and sharing, as well as external and related to professional development needs from the reflection on one’s own educational practice. Educators consider it essential to evaluate the resources created so that they can be reused in continuous improvement processes. Commercial use and misappropriation of the works are two of the main tensions identified. The community factor of teaching guides most behaviours in OER adoption in educational institutions and is presented as an inherent part of the development and transformation of the curriculum.

Author Biographies

Virginia Rodés, Universidad de la República

Virginia Rodés is currently Associate Professor at Universidad de la República (Uruguay), where she coordinates the Virtual Learning Environments and the Open and Accessible Educational Resources Interdisciplinary Center. She obtained a degree in Communication Sciences and a MSc in Higher Education from from Universidad de la República. She is currently PhD in Equity and Innovation in Education candidate from Universidad de Santiago de Compostela (Spain).

Adriana Gewerc-Barujel, University of Santiago de Compostela

Dr. Adriana Gewerc Barujel was born in Córdoba, Argentina. She has a degree in Educational Sciences from the National University of Córdoba, Argentina (1982) and a PhD in Pedagogy (1998) from the University of Santiago de Compostela. She is part of the Stellae research group. She currently works as a tenured professor in this university teaching the subjects Educational Technology and Multimedia and Educational Software. She is coordinator of the Degree of Pedagogy of the Faculty of Educational Sciences and Director of the Department of Didactics and School Organization. His research focuses on the problem and the meaning of the integration of technologies in educational organizations and their implications for teaching. In this context, in the last time, he explores the use of new teaching and learning environments for teaching and research. He has directed doctoral theses on these topics and has published books and articles that show the work done in these years.

Martín Llamas-Nistal, University of Vigo

Dr. Martín Llamas Nistal is an Engineer and Doctor in Telecommunications Engineering from the Polytechnic University of Madrid, Spain (1986 and 1994 respectively). He is the author or co-author of more than 200 articles in international journals and conferences. He has directed several research projects both nationally and internationally in the fields of telematics and e-learning. He is coordinator of the RIURE network of CYTED (riure.net) and Vice President of Publications of the Education Society of the IEEE.

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Published

2019-02-28

How to Cite

Rodés, V., Gewerc-Barujel, A., & Llamas-Nistal, M. (2019). University Teachers and Open Educational Resources: Case Studies from Latin America. The International Review of Research in Open and Distributed Learning, 20(1). https://doi.org/10.19173/irrodl.v20i1.3853

Issue

Vol. 20 No. 1 (2019)

Section

Research Articles

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