State of the Art Review of Quality Issues related to Open Educational Resources (OER)

The need for quality assurance mechanisms to support the development and sustainable use of Open Educational Resources (OER) are being raised in the literature and in European and national policy documents as a major challenge and opportunity. There is however, only little experience and consensus in research and practice on how to define and approach quality for OER, in contrast with quality assurance related to eLearning for instance. The notion of openness is posing additional challenges. The aim of this report is to provide an overview of Quality approaches and concepts for OER and to some extent, Open Education, with the aim to identify policy options for action at EU and Member State level to further promote the development and use of OER in Europe. The focus for the overview is on Higher Education in the context of Open Education as announced in the Commission Communication on “Rethinking education: Investing in skills for better socio-economic outcomes” (EC, 2013). This report introduces quality concepts and approaches related to OER. It provides an overview of definitions of quality for OER and suggests a conceptual mapping as well as an overview of major issues related to quality for OER. Where appropriate, it gives examples of relevant existing practices and initiatives to illustrate the conceptual mapping. It also provides insights on the role of different actors and institutions involved in quality and OER. Finally, the report provides recommendations for policymakers at European and Member States level on quality assurance and OER with the aim to support the further development and use of OER in Europe.