UNESCO Highlights the Importance of the Open Education Policy

• August 7, 2024

To advance the democratization of knowledge and open educational policies, the UNESCO Chair in Distance Education is relaunching the Open Education Policy Game in 2024. Originally created in 2018, this social technology has been updated to incorporate the 2019 UNESCO Recommendations on Open Educational Resources (OER), emphasizing the impact of Open Educational Practices (OEP) on learning outcomes.

Since its inception, the Game has been a crucial tool for collaborative diagnostics and the implementation of open educational policies in institutions dedicated to democratizing knowledge. The updated version focuses on open practices, collaboration, sustainability, shared management, public digital goods, and digital rights.

These updates align with the five areas of the UNESCO Recommendation on OER:

• Empowering stakeholders to access, use, adapt, and redistribute OER
• Developing supportive policies
• Encouraging inclusive and equitable quality OER
• Promoting sustainability models for OER
• Facilitating international cooperation

Maria Rebeca Otero Gomes, Coordinator of the Education Sector at UNESCO in Brazil, states: “Open Educational Resources are fundamental to democratizing access to quality education. They promote inclusion by allowing students from all regions and socio-economic backgrounds to access the knowledge needed to thrive and develop, reaffirming our commitment to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development by fostering inclusive, equitable, and quality education for all.”

Developed by the Open Education Initiative at the University of Brasília (UnB), the Game represents social technology co-created with managers, educators, and technicians from both public and private educational sectors across Brazil. Available in Portuguese, English, and Spanish, the first version has been utilized in various educational contexts globally, including Argentina, Peru, Cuba, the United States, Serbia, Slovenia, Namibia, and Tanzania, enhancing understanding of key concepts and the importance of participatory management in educational policy formulation.

The initial version also served as the main training resource for Open Education Leaders. Conducted by UNESCO in Brazil from 2020 to 2021, this training involved 200 education professionals from different regions of the country.

The Open Education Policy Game materials, including a manual, board pieces, and cards, are available under an open license for both online and in-person use. A French version will soon be available, expanding its accessibility to a broader audience.

[Click here to access the Open Education Policy Game]

About Open Educational Resources (OER)

UNESCO coined the term and concept of OER in 2002, solidified by the Paris Declaration in 2012. OER includes teaching, learning, and research materials that are either in the public domain or released under an open license, permitting free access, use, adaptation, and redistribution. The Recommendation document builds on the outcomes of the 2017 Ljubljana OER Action Plan in Slovenia and supports UNESCO’s efforts to advance the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

Original article at UNESCO