Interviews

Susan d'Antoni is currently working on open content, in which she has great interest and about which she spoke to the UOC. Open content (or Open Educational Resources) is any creative work (articles, photos, audio or video) that is published in a format that explicitly allows for copying and re-use. Open content may be in the public domain or under an "open" licence, such as those offered by Creative Commons.

What do you feel are the advantages that open contents offer the university community?

I would stress the difference between the benefits for students and the benefits for professors. The former are the focus for what universities do - their main function. But, obviously, open content can be used by people for independent learning, without their having to enrol at an institution. There comes a time in life when our knowledge is not sufficient - initial education is rarely sufficient for the whole of our lives, either as individuals or as professionals. For this reason, it is very important that we have the chance to continue to learn both formally and informally. Despite the fact that we use them informally to improve our knowledge, Open Educational Resources that can be accessed from universities normally have a structured format. If students need qualifications, then they have to enrol at a university. But, if they do not, then they can learn anywhere.

This opens many doors for citizens in certain countries?

I believe this kind of learning is important in any country, but, obviously, it is more important in developing countries. There, the percentage of the population with the opportunity to go to university is very low. With open content accessible on the internet, there is more information available to those who do not have the chance to study at a university. If the learner has the minimum infrastructure needed to access the Internet (which is an important point!), open content can make a contribution to the development of their skills in their own countries.

Can professors also benefit?

I think that professors can benefit in two ways. They are the producers of content - they develop it and make it accessible. But they are also the people who use the materials produced by others to teach. Making your content accessible raises your profile: if you put your work on the Internet, your ideas become much more accessible to others. One of the aims of the university is to create and disseminate knowledge; and this is a way to increase the sharing of new knowledge. If you consider using other people's work, then you have the chance to search for information from among different academic resources from various institutions, with distinct cultural and linguistic traditions from around the world. This knowledge can be used to enhance your own to prepare classes by adopting and adapting that which is relevant and appropriate in order to meet your needs. This may prove to be a much more effective process than that where each academic around the world individually creates his or her own content. Once again, I would like to highlight that this may be of especial benefit in developing countries where professors may not have access to significant resources, such as libraries.

Some institutions may be suspicious of this attitude?

If you see universities as social institutions supported by the societies they serve, then an initiative like this one makes sense. If universities make their content open, then they give back intellectual content to society, and achieve their mission. We, at UNESCO, see universities as having the role of creating new knowledge, transferring this to the new generations and offering a service to society, by making it known. Sharing content and knowledge over the Internet is a way of serving society in general, and of going beyond borders. This makes university institutions more open. Open Educational Resources will become accessible internationally.

So far, we have only seen advantages, but? what risks do open contents imply or what problems do they involve?

The main problem, from a user's point of view (student or professor), is knowing whether the material you are looking at is of a high enough quality. If the material is from a world-renowned institution, then you have some idea of the quality; but, if they are from an institution or academic that you have not heard of, then you do not know what you have before you. I think that this is the main issue at the moment. We need some way of knowing the level of quality of Open Educational Resources on the Internet.

Do you think that using this model will lead to changes in university institutions as we know them?

Absolutely! Change always invites institutions to rethink and reassess relations with their academic staff. Offering content freely and openly on the web is a new model: policy decisions and plans are needed, there are legal implications and resources are required. It is definitely a factor for change!

How do you see the UOC in this new university panorama?

The UOC is a new, interesting and inspiring university model. There are two aspects in this: the university is linked to the local society, but? it has the ability and willingness to go beyond the local environment. Thanks to this innovative model, which after eleven years has proven itself to be effective, it has the obligation to contribute to the discussions that other organisations are now considering new approaches and new methods of serving learners. It is important to share the knowledge learned by its professionals, their experiences? I think that the UOC is an interesting new model for institutions with a specific vision of how to serve society.