THE US OPEN: The Department of Education has launched #GoOpen, a campaign to encourage schools to use open educational resources (OER). To add force to the hashtag, the Department proposed new regulation that any tool developed with its federal grant funds will be required to have an open license, would which allow schools to use and modify those resources for free.
The Department also hired an open educational advisor, Andrew Marcinek, to work with schools, districts and states on choosing or adapting these resources through the Office of Educational Technology. Already, 10 districts have agreed to replace one textbook with OER materials within the next year. Companies and organizations including Microsoft and Edmodo have also made commitments to make OER materials from the Learning Registry more easily accessible.
“By requiring an open license, we will ensure that high-quality resources created through our public funds are shared with the public, thereby ensuring equal access for all teachers and students regardless of their location or background,” John King, senior advisor and appointed Secretary of Education, said in a statement.
This week has been busy for the Department, which on Tuesday encouraged states and districts to limit the amount of testing.
