Background to the Project
The Teacher Capacity Development in Open Educational Resources (OER) and Digital Learning project is supported by the Commonwealth of Learning (COL) through a Contribution Agreement signed with the Ministry of Education, Kiribati, with the aim of developing teacher capacity in OER and digital learning as part of KTC's programme to incrementally digitise and deliver its programmes.
As a result of COL support, 500 teacher educators and teachers are expected to participate in a blended training programme comprising four online courses and a three-part onsite workshop series. This will improve capacity for the development and use of OER, which will in turn enhance the delivery of teacher training and teaching, especially in remote locations.
The key outcomes of this project include:
- increased capacity for OER and content development;
- improved learning opportunities for teacher educators and teachers, resulting in better learning outcomes.
- increased skills among teachers in sourcing, developing, and sharing OER resources through an online portal or offline means; and
- demonstrable improvement in overall instructional practice.
Through this initiative, the partners hope to improve access to education and learning opportunities, particularly in under-resourced communities. By enhancing teacher capacity in OER and digital learning, the aim is to promote more innovative and inclusive teaching and learning practices, resulting in better outcomes for students.
Workshop on ‘Innovative Teaching and Learning with OER’
Introduction
The Innovative Teaching and Learning with OER workshop, to be held in Kiribati on March 31- April 1, 2023 aims to provide an opportunity for participants to explore and develop skills in using Open Educational Resources (OER) to enhance their teaching and learning practices. OER can be defined as teaching, learning, and research resources that are in the public domain or have been released under an open license, such as a Creative Commons license, that enables their use and adaptation by others.
The use of OER in teaching and learning can provide significant benefits, including:
- increased access to education;
- improved quality of education; and
- reduced costs for both educators and learners
This workshop will provide an opportunity for participants to discuss the concept of OER and its benefits in enhancing access to education and learning opportunities. Participants will also collaborate with others to co-create and plan for the implementation of OER in their own teaching and learning contexts, including using mobile learning and access options.
We hope that participants will leave the workshop with a renewed commitment to innovative and inclusive teaching and learning practices, and a deeper understanding of the transformative potential of OER and mobile learning.
Workshop objectives
The ‘Innovative Teaching and Learning with OER’ is a 2-day blended workshop whose key objective is to provide an on-site orientation to teachers in online teaching and learning, with a specific focus on OER and mobile learning.
Participants at the workshop shall:
Target audience
The workshop targets 70 participants who will engage in collaborative activities and discussions. This will include teachers, teacher educators and other education leaders.
Workshop Objectives
The ‘Innovative Teaching and Learning with OER’ is a 2-day blended workshop whose key objective is to provide an on-site orientation to teachers in online teaching and learning, with a specific focus on OER and mobile learning. Participants at the workshop shall:
- discuss the concepts of open educational resources and mobile learning, and the benefits in enhancing access to education and learning opportunities;
- collaborate with other participants to co-create audio based OER;
- collaborate with other participants to plan for the implementation of OER in their own teaching and learning contexts; and
- access online workshop resources, as well as COL courses on OER and Mobile Learning
Relevant Courses for the Workshop
Participants may access the two COL courses using these links:
Post Workshop Ativities
In the immediate post workshop period, it is projected that the participants will:
- continue to collaborate and share experiences online;
- complete the COL courses on OER and Mobile Learning and upload / share certificates with course mentors;
- share their audio based OER online / offline for wider access; and
- reflect on their teaching and learning contexts and share their stories;