Blended Open Education - COVID-19 Edition

A lecture at the annual conference of the Open/Technology in Education, Society, and Scholarship Association, 2021.06.01.

Click the image above to see the presentation slides.

Abstract

Advocates of open educational resources (OER) and open educational practices (OEP) are frustrated that these approaches do not get the recognition they deserve. The many obstacles discouraging instructor involvement in pursuing these innovative approaches have been well documented save one: the inclination of the open education community toward an all-or-nothing approach to open education. Many aspects of open education, especially in the realm of OER, have adopted maximalist positions that leave little room for diversity or compromise.

This presentation will introduce the notion of "blended open education" to draw attention to the mixed nature of open education reality. Like blended learning, blended open education brings new approaches to augment and modify traditional practices. By creating a space for those who wish to integrate aspects of OER and OEP into their teaching, blended open education might attract new interest in open education as a whole.

A key feature of the presentation will be a discussion of how the pivot to online education during the COVID-19 pandemic has required educators to adopt hybrid delivery models. An unexpected result of this shift in perspective has been a new receptiveness to innovation in instruction - fertile ground for some of the practical yet innovative benefits afforded by blended open education.