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article on new report from Ithaka S+R that extrapolates barriers to machine-guided learning based on barriers to online learning

ccLearn is a division of Creative Commons which is dedicated to realizing the full potential of the Internet to support open learning and open educational resources (OER). Our mission is to minimize barriers to sharing and reuse of educational materials - legal barriers, technical barriers, and social barriers.

"Abstract Open educational resources (OER) raise many similar issues for education to those that have surrounded Learning Objects (LO). However the greater use and availability of digital technologies and open licensing seems to be enabling OER to have wider acceptance into individual and institutional teaching practice. While the need for appropriate design in teaching and learning on the part of educators, which was the primary driver of developments in LO, remains, the very openness of OER is changing the relationships between educators, learners and content (resources) and is becoming a primary agent of change. Experience in OpenLearn, a major initiative to provide OER from The Open University, indicates that some of these changes can be planned for while others will emerge as releasing content openly imposes evolutionary pressures that accelerate change and work around barriers. Development can then be driven by learner expectations of the technology and needs for informal life-long learning that in turn impact on how content is being designed and openly presented. It is argued that this represents a shift from a teacher-centric, systematic model of change in teaching practices as embodied in earlier ideas about LO to a learner-centric, systemic model of change as embodied in OER."

"The project analyses and maps the scale and scope of initiatives regarding "open educational resources" (OER) in terms of their purpose, content, and funding. It looks into different sustainable cost/benefits models and intellectual property right issues linked to OER initiatives. Furthermore we address questions regarding incentives and barriers for universities and faculty staff to deliver their material to OER initiatives and how to improve access and usefulness for users of OER initiatives."

"ABSTRACT: This document is an introduction to Open Learning. It examines briefly what "Open" means and the different facets of the open movement and what "Learning" means and how it is different for every person. Attention is brought to the issue of the digital divide and ways to reduce or eliminate barriers to education. We look at how to get started with Open Learning if you are fortunate enough to have access to the technologies, and possible ways of obtaining access if you don't. We then go over how to map out a personalized learning strategy that works for you. The core of the document goes over many of the different types of Open Learning resources available, and possible ways to organize and structure your learning. We will also looks at the issue of accreditation and how to receive recognition for your learning in a way that allows you to demonstrate your newly acquired skills. Finally, it finishes with ideas on how to start solo or collaborative projects as well as possible ways to get them funded."

President of Empire State College Alan Davis on their unique focus on open education: "One of the reasons why we have positioned and described ourselves as an "open university" is to grab prospective learners' and others' attention, and then be ready to describe what we mean by "open" education, and vice versa. There is a whole philosophy behind it, and it is reinforced in many ways by the impact of technology, with open source software and systems, open education resources, and so on. We are a leader in the state and in the country in exploring these areas too. But even without technology, our approach is truly open in all its dimensions, striving always to overcome the barriers of the "closed" traditional system that restrict so many from getting a university education."