OpenCPD - creating MOOCs and OERs with no budget or power for professional development

Monday 14:00-15:30 (1), Jenner Suite

Type: Workshop

Theme: MOOCs and open courses

#oer14 #abs36

Authors

Mrs Penny Andrews, MSc Student, University of Sheffield, [email protected]

Abstract

What are the aims and intended learning outcomes of the workshop?

The aims are to demonstrate how it is possible to develop open educational resources and MOOCs without the backing of an institution or a project budget, while keeping to the principles of Open Culture, and that students and workers without traditional qualifications can contribute alongside senior professionals towards the furthering of knowledge in their own industry or area of interest.

By the end of the session, delegates will feel empowered to create and support the creation of educational materials outside of a project or institutional setting and understand how hierarchies can be crossed, expertise from people at all levels can be harnessed and high quality resources can be developed when everyone involved understands what Open truly means.

Content

Delegates will learn about the OpenCPD project, which came out of the Librarycamp movement. Librarycamps are unconferences for anyone interested in improving libraries. There is no agenda, there are no slides and anyone can lead a session. Sessions are pitched on the day and attendees choose which interests them most, with the power to walk out of sessions or session swap to suit their needs. The movement is hugely popular, with every (free) event selling out quickly, and attracts people from inside and outside of the profession at all levels. It is an excellent learning opportunity, and attendees learn about topics that would never be covered in internal training, professional qualifications and standard conferences.

OpenCPD takes the horizontal learning and open access principles of Librarycamp and takes it online so that people with caring responsibilities, long working hours and those who are based in isolated areas geographically can benefit from this collective educational experience. Delegates will come to understand how individual areas of passion and expertise can be harnessed to share and discuss knowledge with peers, and how the challenges of technology and budget are being met.

Delivery method(s)

The workshop will be delivered in “Choose Your Own Adventure” style, taking delegates through the project and discussing each decision made at every turning point. Delegates will be encouraged to talk about how they could apply the knowledge gained in their own situation, allowing them to create and support the creation of learning materials outside of traditional contexts.

Further details

Keywords: opencpd, librarycamp, oers, moocs, open education, unconference, open culture