OEPS forum 2

The OEPS forum that took place last week in Stirling gave lots of food for thought.  It was good to see participants from a wide range of backgrounds there although the majority were folk who are engaged to some extent with open education already.  The following day I gave a presentation at the Scottish Association for Lifelong Learning Council meeting.  In contrast those attending – mainly practitioners and policy makers in widening participation and lifelong learning were unfamiliar with OER and OEP.  Something that Laura Czerniewicz  said in her plenary presentation at the OEPS forum resonated for me at both meetings.  Our students live in a digital world and they have experience and understandings in relation to finding and using resources that don’t necessarily align with institutional expectations.  I think I would add that this applies to students of all ages and backgrounds and to the organisations that we work with in widening participation partnerships.