Transformational Change at the Intersections of Technology, Education and Design at the Open University of Sri Lanka

Abstract

Technology, education and design are at the heart of any educational transaction. For optimum impact these need to be carefully choreographed and orchestrated. Despite acknowledgement and acceptance of technology, education and design as critical attributes of any successful educational transaction, bringing them together to ensure transformational change, both at the individual and at the institutional level, remains a serious challenge. This includes not only the development of the knowledge and understanding of the subject matter content, but also a rethink and reorientation of the essential value principles of education. This paper reports a case study of the experiences of the Open University of Sri Lanka in bringing about such transformational change in relation to the adoption of open educational practices (OEP) over the past decade. This is captured in the narratives of key participants involved in the projects. These achievements comprise: 1) the professional development of academic staff in the integration of OER; 2) a robust model for the integration of OER; and 3) a rigorous approach to the evaluation of the impacts of OER integration on a range of dependent variables including perceptions and practices of educators towards OEP. // Paper ID 116