OE Global 2019

Concerns over copyright issues can present a practical barrier to open educational resource (OER) use and adoption. The proposed presentation provides a case study of the University of Alberta’s Opening Up Copyright (OUC) instructional module series and discusses how the series improves access to knowledge about copyright: through its content creation and delivery; by modeling best practices; and by incorporating community engagement into its design. These three facets of open education will be explored in the presentation.

First, OUC aims to support educators and students in an open education environment by providing accessible information on the subject of copyright. Module content is offered at a range of levels, from introductory issues about practical topics (such as copyright issues related to the use of images) to advanced legal discussions based on specific sections of the Canadian Copyright Act or major Supreme Court of Canada cases.

Second, OUC benefits other OER creators by demonstrating best practices in the use of copyright-protected and open content. This includes making extensive use of open and public domain content in the modules and also developing modules that specifically address public domain resources, the role of open licensing, and how to locate open content.

A third means through which the project serves open education and OER is through its intentional outreach activities, which include conference presentations, email updates to relevant listservs to raise awareness and engagement, and also by providing a series of open, editable pages where anyone can comment on and contribute to the project.

The proposed presentation concludes by highlighting OUC’s role in connecting to the theme of the conference that aims to emphasize the opportunities of open education as a means to empower and increase access to quality educational opportunities.