Policy, Practice, Change and Control.

David Kernohan - CETIS Conference - 2014

Icons from the Noun Project – public domain collection

What is a “policy”?

A policy is a principle or protocol to guide decisions and achieve rational outcomes. A policy is a statement of intent, and is implemented as a procedure or protocol.(Wikipedia)

What is not a “policy”?

A mandateA condition of employmentA detailed plan or procedureA lawA contract

Why would you want a “policy”?

To provide explicit support for a particular practice or idea…… but not to enforce either the practice or the idea.

To provide a scaffolding for proposed future work…… or to reinterpret earlier work in the light of a later idea.

To bring a matter to wider attention…… with a hoped-for result that more concrete steps are taken.

Pop quiz!

Which of these is a policy, which is a process, and which is a mandate?

• “from each according to their ability, to each according to their need”• The Gnu Public License• “co-design”• Help to Buy• The Communist Manifesto• Never mix the grape and the grain• Give me Dublin Core or give me death

TRICKY, ISN’T IT?

Ready reckoner:

Does it, or could it, have a project plan and budget?PROCESS.

Could it have the words “…and annex the Sudetenland” at the end?

MANDATE.

Can you imagine Ed Miliband announcing it? (“I say this to you…”)POLICY.

Back in the day…

(images: AndyPowe11@flickr, CC-BY [link1] [link2]

Image: Sheila MacNeill on Flickr. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED!

Some time in 2009 | Presntation by Malcolm Reada at ALT-C I think| Slide 10

• JISC maintains its position as a leadership organisation which adopts technology innovation to deliver practical solutions by being:– Innovative– Risk taking– Proactive– Investigative and explorative– Knowledgeable– Focussed – Respected– Authoritative

How JISC Stays Different

HEFCE/Higher Education Academy/JISC

what we are doing

• building capacity, building expertise

• pilot, experimental, risky – but we are looking for a model that is sustainable.

• Future activity in this area is based on the outcomes of the pilot, future activity may be very different in nature.

Programme briefing day, 2009

The Wilson Review of Jisc

The promotion of innovation has been central to JISC’s mission, and since 2000 it has funded approximately 1000 such projects. Many organisations have commented on the positive impact of this developmental activity, which has accelerated and coordinated progress across the sectors, and helped to keep the UK at the forefront of ICT applications to education and research. Programmes have fostered collaboration and built capacity.

(para 43)

The roots of UKOER

• Longstanding UK interest in academics using each others materials, but confusion about the issues involved.

• An interest in the OER approach amongst policymakers, particularly MIT, OCWC and the (UK) Open University

• A background in using small projects with an emphasis on sustainable practice as a model for changes in institutional processes

UKOER10| Presentation by Sarah Porter| Slide 13

Unique aspects of UKOER

• A collection of small pilot studies• Low level of funding• Embraces plurality of release models• Focus on building sustainable practice• Low (technical) barriers to participation• Projects promoting themselves to their key audience• Rather release than not release, even if only a more

restrictive license is possible

Some time in 2009 | Presntation by Malcolm Reada at ALT-C I think| Slide 14

The Wilson Review of Jisc

Some responses to the consultation questioned the return on the investment in a large number of small projects (see paragraph 44). In contrast, a 2009 report34 by million+ identified the high impact of small JISC projects in smaller universities.

(para 52)34 http://www.millionplus.ac.uk/research-policy/reports/2009-reports-archive/from-inputs-to-impact-a-study-of-the-impact-of-jisc-funding-on-universities/

Eg. - “Funding has enabled institutions and individuals to undertake exploratory projects in a low-risk context, with opportunities to experiment that might not be possible within routine university systems”

Disruption?Image: Shimelle@Flickr, cc-by

Future-gazing

HIGHER EDUCATIONStudents at the heart of the system

JUNE 2011

Key messagesCompetition – primarily on cost and qualityEmphasis on information provisionEspecially regarding employment chancesLighter-touch regulationNew market entrants

What will the HE sector look like?How will it feel to work there?

Two possible responses…OER allows academics to contribute to andengage in “pure education” outside of marketconstrictions.

Many emerging alternatives to marketisied HE are predicated on openness.

OER supports learning that is not predicated onan expectation of future employment chances.

OER allows you to “own” your own materials, and for others to “own” them too.

OER allows you to write, interact, teach, learn and live outside of a marketised space.

OER is the ultimate “market information” for entrants. It shows them precisely whatthey will be dealing with.

OER helps you manage risks in usingexternal materials.

Most of the world’s best institutions (Yale,MIT, Harvard, Oxford, Michigan) release OER.

Research has indicated that OER can be anotable factor in driving student application.

An institutional OER portal can help buildrelationships with prospective students.

in opposition in agreement

Many policies, one practice

Many people, one practice

Many people, many practices

Many people, many practices,one community.

#UKOER #4LIFE