The evolution of sustainability models for Open Educational Resources

Insights from the literature and experts

Bibliographic Data

ID21632770
AuthorsAhmed Tlili (0000-0003-1449-7751, Smart Learning Institute of Beijing Normal University, Beijing, People’s Republic of China), Fabio Nascimbeni (0000-0002-1051-1272, Research Institute for Innovation & Technology in Education (UNIR iTED), Universidad Internacional de La Rioja (UNIR), Logroño, Spain), Daniel Burgos (0000-0003-0498-1101, Research Institute for Innovation & Technology in Education (UNIR iTED), Universidad Internacional de La Rioja (UNIR), Logroño, Spain, corresponding author), Xiangling Zhang (0000-0002-3286-9064, Smart Learning Institute of Beijing Normal University, Beijing, People’s Republic of China), Ronghuai Huang (0000-0003-4651-5248, Smart Learning Institute of Beijing Normal University, Beijing, People’s Republic of China), Ting-Wen Chang (0000-0002-5782-1083, Smart Learning Institute of Beijing Normal University, Beijing, People’s Republic of China)
Year2023
Volume31
Issue3
Pages1421-1436
Publication date2023-04-03
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueInteractive Learning Environments (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1049-4820 • E-ISSN: 1744-5191
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/10494820.2020.1839507
OpenAlexW3097603131
LanguageEN
Citations received9
References cited32

The adoption of Open Educational Resources (OER) can, on the one hand, increase access and quality in higher education, but on the other hand it is raising concerns among universities and researchers about its economic sustainability. This is mainly because, unlike traditional online learning, in OER-based approaches learners do not have to pay to access learning resources, however the institution incurs costs for the production, maintenance and dissemination of OER. In this context, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) has urgently called for more research on OER sustainability models in its 2019 OER recommendation. To contribute to a better understanding of this issue, this paper used the triangulation method to investigate the potential OER sustainability models that are currently implemented by universities, along with their challenges and possible developments. Through a comprehensive literature review and a 2-round Delphi method with thirty OER experts, ten OER sustainability models have been identified and analysed, where public and internal funding are the most established ones. The findings of this study could support organisations in developing their own OER sustainability strategy, facilitating OER adoption worldwide and therefore contributing to achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

Business · Delphi method · Geography · Knowledge management · Open Educational Resources · Process management · Sustainability · World Wide Web · Computer Science · E-Learning and Knowledge Management · Online Learning and Analytics · Open Education and E-Learning

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