OAsis

COL’s Open Access Institutional Repository

Welcome to OAsis, the Commonwealth of Learning's repository for publications and learning resources. Publications found here are licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International and can be freely downloaded for reuse and adaptation with attribution to COL, except where indicated.

Featured Items

Innovative Models and Practices in Teacher Development: Case Studies from the Commonwealth

Commonwealth of Learning (COL); Ogange, Betty; Newman, Mairette; Mays, Tony

Teacher professional development plays a crucial role in improving education quality, especially in under-resourced and marginalised communities. The expansion of open, distance, and technology-enabled learning - accelerated by the Covid-19 pandemic - offered new ways to equip educators with skills for digital and blended teaching. Innovative Models and Practices in Teacher Development: Case Studies from the Commonwealth brings together eleven examples of school-based training, digital education leadership, and the use of open educational resources (OER). It covers teacher training initiatives in The Gambia, Guyana, Kenya, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Sri Lanka, and Trinidad and Tobago. Other case studies draw from regional initiatives in the Pacific countries and Commonwealth-wide projects. The book particularly highlights locally relevant strategies that strengthened teacher capacity during and after the pandemic. The book highlights innovative thinking in teacher training, demonstrating how technology, structured training models, and teacher networks are shaping professional development. It calls for long-term investment in teacher learning, moving beyond emergency responses to ongoing professional growth and instructional improvement. Looking ahead, the book stresses the importance of expanding teacher training through open and distance learning (ODL) and digitalisation. By capturing real-world experiences, this book offers practical guidance for education ministries, teacher training programmes, and policymakers committed to strengthening teacher development for the future.

2025-03

Designing and Implementing Micro-Credentials: A Guide for Practitioners

Rossiter, Darien; Tynan, Belinda

Many organisations are experimenting with micro-credentials, while others are emerging to collect, publish and offer credentials. The decision to engage with these new forms of credentials will be influenced by many factors, as described in this guide. Each organisation will need to assess their own level of maturity as new and innovative forms of credentialing continue to evolve. The organisational appetite for change, its culture and readiness, and the availability of resources to support all the stakeholders involved in the journey should inform each implementation strategy and accompanying operational planning activities.

2019-08

Connections (vol.30, no.1)

Mays, Tony; Mishra, Sanjaya; Moore, Schontal; Askounis, Helen

COL Newsletter published March 2025.

2025-03

Recent Submissions

Impact of Virtual Laboratory-Assisted Microlearning on Students' Motivation, Engagement, and Academic Success
(2025-03-24) Mahendra, I Gede Budi; Killis, Billy; Panda, Santosh
Open and distance learning (ODL) often faces challenges in increasing student motivation and engagement. This study aimed to examine the effectiveness of a virtual laboratory-assisted microlearning platform in alleviating the identified challenges. Using a quasi-experimental methodology, 52 students from higher education institutions in Indonesia were divided into two different groups: the experimental group received a virtual laboratory-assisted microlearning treatment, while the control group utilized a conventional microlearning platform. Descriptive statistical analysis revealed that the experimental group achieved mean motivation and engagement score of 187.00 (SD = 3.82213), in contrast to the control group, which recorded a lower mean score of 167.8929 (SD = 6.03287). A statistically significant difference between the two groups was demonstrated through a t-test (t = 13.375, p < 0.001). Furthermore, the N-Gain analysis proved the superior effectiveness of the experimental group, resulting in a score of 0.7243 (high category) compared to the control group's score of 0.4697 (moderate category). This finding confirms that the integration of virtual laboratory in microlearning not only increases motivation and engagement, but also contributes to students' academic success in ODL, making it an effective alternative for teaching in the digital era.
Empowering Women and Girls Project: Annual Report 2024
(2025-04) Ferreira, Frances; Sudesh, Veronica
Achieving Gender Equality and increasing women’s and girls’ empowerment are core components of the Commonwealth of Learning’s (COL) mission, and the Empowering Women and Girls (EWG) project plays a pivotal role in advancing these goals. Funded by Global Affairs Canada (GAC) as part of the Canadian Feminist International Assistance Policy (FIAP), which prioritises women and girls in its international development efforts, this initiative is being implemented by COL in collaboration with eight local organisations across Bangladesh, Malawi, Mozambique, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. The EWG project is now in its second year of implementation, and it has contributed to significant changes at the village, community and national levels. These changes are particularly evident across the project’s three key pathways of change, reinforcing its holistic approach to enhancing education and skills development, strengthening economic participation and improving health outcomes. By fostering sustainable social transformation, this initiative is actively contributing to the creation of a more equitable and inclusive society. This report provides an analysis of the progress towards achieving the outcomes during the second year of the EWG project, which builds on the significant groundwork laid in its first year.
Blended Learning Course Experiences in Higher Education Institutions in Mauritius
(2025-05) Bhagat, Kaushal K
This report evaluates the implementation and impact of technology-enabled learning (TEL) across six public higher education institutions (HEIs) in Mauritius, supported by the Commonwealth of Learning (COL) and coordinated by the Higher Education Commission (HEC) of Mauritius. As part of the intervention, COL organised three intensive five-day workshops and two online training programmes, equipping over 100 faculty members to develop and deliver 88 blended courses. This report assessed the outcomes of these efforts through a mixed-methods approach involving 617 student participants as well as faculty focus group discussions. It explored students’ digital literacy, motivation, blended learning experience, and learning attitudes while examining gender and institutional differences. The study demonstrates that well-structured TEL interventions can enhance student engagement, motivation, and satisfaction in blended learning contexts. However, continued investment in digital infrastructure, localised faculty training, and systemic institutional support is essential for sustaining TEL practices and achieving long-term educational transformation in Mauritius.
Outcomes Report: The Workshop on ‘Resilient Skills and Livelihood for Women in the Small States of the Pacific’
(2025-04) Commonwealth of Learning (COL); Nyangara, Karen; Jha, Jyotsna
This report presents the activities and outcomes of the regional workshop in the Pacific organized by GIRLS Inspire Initiative in collaboration with the Partnership for Open, Distance and Flexible Learning in the Pacific (PACFOLD) under Workstream 2.2. Workstream 2.2. aims to build the capacity of NGOs to develop structures and strategies to deliver leadership/vocational courses using diverse Open and Distance learning methodologies. The goal is to contribute to more equitable access to training and learning opportunities in the region by supporting marginalized learners and improving the knowledge and skills of youth for improved lives and livelihoods.
Editorial: Reflections on the Increasing Role of TEL in Learning for Development
(2025-03-24) Panda, Santosh; Panda, Santosh
In the ‘Editorial’ to the last issue of our journal JL4D, we had noted that “For effective implementation of TEL, Panda and Mishra (2020) underlined that while ‘policy-capacity-technology’ could act as a theory of change model, open and distance institutions need to invest in our collective understanding of ‘learning’ in a ‘networked society’ and work toward implementation of TEL in relation to contextual socio-cultural and educational ecologies” (Panda, 2024, p. i). Deriving from this, it may be underlined that context and contextual understanding become very important insofar as technology deployment and application in ‘learning for development’ are concerned. ‘Learning for development’ (LfD) covers a wide range of themes, levels, and strategies, and these are also transforming in contemporary times. Research has been leading this transformation, and research on technology-enabled learning (TEL) contributing to and facilitating LfD should not only be contextual but, more importantly, look into the critical role of technology for community-based socio-economic development (Selwyn, 2023; Selwyn et al., 2020). Based on these formulations, we have selected and included 17 items (nine research papers, seven case studies, and one book review) in this issue of the Journal.

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