PCF5:Commonwealth values in a digital world: WikiEducator, an international community project

Title of session
Commonwealth values in a digital world: WikiEducator, an international community project

Session details

 * Date: ... 16 July 2008.
 * Time: ... 16:00
 * Room: ... Nunn Hall

Introduction
Wayne Mackintosh facilitated a session reporting on the WikiEducator initiative, focusing on what our community has achieved to date. This was an opportunity to introduce WikiEducators to the Pan Commonwealth Forum, and for WikiEducator's to talk about their own projects. WE started the session viewing a short video clip of Desmond Tutu, Archbishop Emeritus on the importance of freedom in Education. Wayne provided a short overview and summary of the project and demonstrated our wiki to pdf capability in providing access to WikiEducator materials for learners who may not have access to the Internet.

Reflections from the Community

 * Declan McCabe, who was unable to attend PCF5 personally, used a short video, to introduce participants to an innovative project showing how WikiEducator assists student teachers in developing Biology lessons for elementary schools at St Michaels College.
 * Team India (including Pankaj Khare, Anil Prasad, Sanjaya Mishra and Savithri Singh) reflected on the diversity and range of their work.
 * Olabisi Kuboni from Trinidad and Tobago stressed the value of our community in learning to work collaboratively.
 * Lystra Sampson-Ovid from Trinidad and Tobago informed us of an initiative to train more than 150 teachers in using WikiEducator.
 * Ioana Chan Mow, appraised the participants of the impact and success of the Wiki Pasifika workshop hosted in New Zealand, and Samoa's plans to host two Learning4Content workshops in the near future.
 * Sandhya Gunness from Mauritius told us how she is using WikiEducator in a Master's Course on social networking at the University of Mauritius.

Key Issues that arose in the session

 * Copyright challenges where institutions hold "all-rights reserved" copyright on materials produced by teachers. Possible solutions:
 * Teachers can still contribute free teaching materials in their personal capacity.
 * Lobby institutions for more supportive IP policy, following the lead of Otago Polytechnic in New Zealand.
 * Technology questions relating to content manipulation for different delivery formats stressing the importance of interoperability
 * General questions on capacity development opportunities.
 * Questions on how WikiEducator plans to promote and ensure quality of OER content development
 * Challenges associated with finding resources in the wiki

Points for future action (Policy, recommendations, commitments etc.)

 * Invite and encourage wide participation in our Quality Assurance and Review Policy framework project.
 * Seek funding sources to promote the development of technical solutions for interoperability and multiple content export alternatives.