Open Educational Resource Policy Considerations and Recommendations: Arguments for Library Involvement
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Authors
Coyne, Aisling
Alfis, Robert
Editor
Date
2021
Publisher
Irish Journal of Academic Practice
Subject
Open Educational Resources
Abstract
Open Educational Resources (OER) have the potential to provide great benefit to those both
in, and outside of, higher education. With financial pressure existing for both students, and
libraries, OER could be uniquely positioned to alleviate some of this strain. This paper
examines the role institutional and national OER policy plays in the development and use of
OER in the context of the 2019 UNESCO OER recommendations, National Forum 2021
enabling policies recommendations for Ireland as well as the impact policy, or lack thereof
can have on an institutional level. Librarians and the librarian skill such as in knowledge and
experience in navigating copyright, licensing issues, intellectual property, rights, and
discoverability, can be greatly beneficial to the creation, publishing and storing of OER but
several barriers exist including awareness, staffing, skills, time, and institutional culture. This
paper discusses policy concerns and considerations and makes arguments for librarian
involvement and illustrates areas in which librarians’ skills can be leveraged. Inequality,
access, accessibility, and the common ethics that underpin both Open Education and
librarianship are key considerations and are discussed throughout.
Description
Citation
Coyne, A. and Alfis, R. (2021) ‘Open educational resource policy considerations and recommendations: arguments for library involvement’, Irish Journal of Academic Practice, 9(12), pp. 1–17. doi:10.21427/X4Q4-FX43.