Inclusive Open Educational Practices: How the Use and Reuse of OER can Support Virtual Higher Education for All
António Teixeira, Carlos João Correia,
Filipa Afonso,
Antonio García Cabot, Eva García López, Salvador Otón Tortosa, Nelson Piedra,
Luciana Canuti, Jacqueline Guzmán,
Miguel Ángel Córdova Solís, Centro de Filosofia, Faculdade de Letras da
Universidade de Lisboa, Portugal
Abstract
Following the recommendation of the 2012 Paris OER Declaration, promotion and use of OER should aim at widening access to education at all levels, both formal and non-formal, in a perspective of lifelong learning, thus contributing to social inclusion, gender equity and special needs education. Given the different kinds of special needs of students with disabilities (physical, sensitive, cognitive), this aim implies a holistic approach to the design, use and reuse of OER. However, this hasn’t been the case so far. Standards and guidelines developed so far tend to consider accessibility only in relation to the design of resources. In this paper we discuss how critical it is to ensure OER use and reuse follows guidelines which consider the different types of disabilities and educational aspects involved in an integrated way. In order to assure “equal opportunities” in education, accessibility should have an educational component related to the level of understanding the users may have of the OER content. We submit a proposal for classification which addresses the educational objectives of OER, the difficulty level of understanding of the content of the resource, and the user profile determined by the type of disability in an integrated form.
If you would like to read the entire contribution, please click here.