3.1 Is YOUR Institution Ready?
Institutional Changes
During the Open Education Conference in Vancouver in October 2012, BCcampus hosted a forum of institutional leaders and OER experts. Three speakers were asked to talk about what has to happen within institutions for change to occur and how we can further open practices, e.g. through models, practices, structures and policies?
In the video below, Alan Davis, President of Kwantlen Polytechnic University, speaks to what he thinks needs to happen based on his vast experience in a variety of institutions. Dr. Davis's talk is the first of the three. The other speakers, Brian Lamb, Director of Innovation at Thompson Rivers University and Cable Green, Director of Global Learning at Creative Commons also had very interesting and valuable things to add to the conversation. But in terms of specific advice for institutions, Dr. Davis's is most germane to our conversation this week. If you have time, we encourage you to watch the entire video.
BCcampus OER Forum 2012 (Video length 1:14:19)
Discussion
- Do you feel your institution is ready for a move to more openness?
- Are there supports in place to help faculty adopt and adapt open textbooks?
- Are there supports in place for students?
- Do your senior administrators understand the value of openness?
- At a broader level, what is the culture at your institution with respect to sharing and intellectual property?
- Would your adoption of open textbooks and other OER be philosophically supported?