OERu/OERu 16.10 Meeting/Group 1 OERu Academic Board

Task: Review the draft terms of reference and plan the establishment of the OERu Academic Board

Notes copied from the draft terms of reference page inadvertently recorded on the wrong page.

Meeting Notes

 * Each institution has its own definition of terms (e.g. programme, course, subject, etc.) - these variations need to be mapped to an ontology to help partners and learners understand what each institution means when it uses these terms.
 * OERu "board" has a coordinating role, not an approval capacity. Helping to avoid duplication of effort among partners (Rhiannon and Brenda)
 * The OERu "board" expressly does not challenge the autonomy of individual - rename it a Programme Advisory Group, or perhaps just Advisory Group (to avoid unnecessarily constraining the group)
 * Need to think about marketing aspects - do we need to do market research, or is there little enough risk to make courses available and see what works?
 * Noted need to look after interests of students in offering programmes - can't leave them stranded....
 * Don't require full consensus - instead encourage taking chances: focus on drawing in partners by seeing other partners "making money".
 * Co-opetition - the OERu Programme Advisory Group can act as coordinator.
 * both encouraging increased efficiency in delivery high-volume courses, as well as supporting "long tail" of courses which traditionally have low enrolment.
 * we need a way of capturing "lore" of the group for the benefit of new participants (we need "bards" who will distil the lore and tell stories)

Points of difference for network

 * high-availability tutorial services (global, "follow the sun" to provide comprehensive tutorial services, for example)
 * implicit value of international collaboration
 * ability of network to benefit rapidly from any successful initiative by any individual partner, and partners will know how to participate and leverage opportunities
 * participation is optional, based on enlightened self-interest
 * there is an advantage (with regard to risk and ongoing costs) of contributing to/drawing from the network's resources

Additional notes - Andrew Van

 * Not an Academic Board
 * Really about guidance as to where priorities should go and avoiding duplication of effort
 * Focussed more at program (degree/award) level than at course (module/subject) level
 * Could help institutions develop a model - more like academic support and coordination group
 * Program Advisory Group as probable name
 * Needs really to think about marketing aspects - is there really a demand for the product?
 * Opportunities for OERu to broker international collaboration cheaply which could be an attractive product
 * Noted need to look after interests of students in offering programs - can’t leave them stranded
 * Need to guide towards things that work and do wash their own face financially