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Lifelong learning of teachers and Open Education Resources: Lithuanian case

 Vaiva Zuzevičiūtė

(co-authors and co-implementers: Laima Ruibytė, Rūta Adamonienė, Aušra Stepanovienė, Birutė Pranevičienė, Rasa Dobržinskienė)

 Faculty of Public Security, Mykolas Romeris University,

LithuaniaThe Final Conference of Langoer: “Enhancing Teaching and

Learning of Less used Languages trough OER/OEP“ (No. 543239-LLP-1-2013-1-LV-KA2NW)

Open Education: Promoting Diversity for European Languages2016, September 26-27

Brussels

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Parameters:The aim of this paper is to discuss the pressures and possible

educational support for teachers who face necessity to meet expectations at least at two dimensions regarding open educational resources (namely: to produce a qualitative piece of OER; and to learn to share and use OER with regards to the legal framework).

Methods of critical analysis of sources and a pilot empiric survey (quantitative: questionnaire) were employed for the development of this presentation.

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Open Education Resources in a contemporary teacher’s work

Sometimes I feel as in the room of mirrors…. Everyone speaks about the necessity to use technologies out there… the head teacher dedicates half of each meeting for the question… but, actually, there are fewer opportunities to actually learn to use them (authors’ note: the technologies)... I would say that there is a paradox - instead of talking so much about a necessity to use technologies, it would be better to actually have opportunities to do that…or to learn to use the most recent ones…” (Woman, 17 years of pedagogical experience; teaching Lithuanian language)

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Dimensions of Lifelong learning (for teachers)Firstly, teachers have to learn to filter information in order to find the

useful and reliable materials, and secondly, they have to be responsible in creating and uploading materials for other professionals’ use. That incorporates also the moral and professional obligation to monitor students’ work to be uploaded. Another dimension is very often an overlooked one, the one, that the project LangOER (http://langoer.eun.org) focused on: and namely the fact that teachers (also, the representatives of many other professions) are not fully aware of the legal aspects of OER. That is, teachers have to be informed about the procedures to upload and to download materials with respect to legal framework on authorship. This dimension is often overlooked, and however, it is an important aspect for making an OER practice a reliable one.

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A whole set of national and international legal documents provide legal framework in the field:

The Copyright and Related Rights Strategy, Official Gazette . 2000 , no. 84-2552Berne Convention for the protection of literary and artistic works, 1886 (http://www3.lrs.lt/pls/inter3/dokpaieska.showdoc_l?p_id=19846&p_query=&p_tr2=)International Convention for the Protection of Performers, Producers of Phonograms and Broadcasting Organisations, Rome, (http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0013/001307/130729mb.pdf)Convention for the Protection of Producers of Phonograms against Unauthorised Duplication of their Phonograms, Geneve, (https://www.e-tar.lt/portal/lt/legalAct/TAR.8EE24C9C89A0)Law on Copyright and Related Rights of the Republic of Lithuania, Official Gazette, 1999-06-09, Nr. 50-1598The Code of Administrative Violations of Law of the Republic of Lithuania (https://www.e-tar.lt/portal/lt/legalAct/TAR.FC2B71C84492)The Law on revising and amending of the Criminal Codel of the Republic of Lithuania, Official Gazette, 2009-07-23, Nr. 87-3663Constitution of the Republic of LithuaniaThe Ruling of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Lithuania on the compliance of Paragraph 1 of Article 21410 of the Code of Administrative Violations of Law of the Republic of Lithuania with the Constitution of the Republic of Lithuania, 5 July 2000Convention Establishing the World Intellectual Property Organization Stokholm 1967, (https://www.e-tar.lt/portal/lt/legalAct/ae1a1c40c03311e5a6588fb85a3cc84b)

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In general, author’s economic writes are ensured, because author regularly has exclusive rights for:

reproduction of a work in any form or by any means;2. publication of a work;3. translation of a work;4. adaptation, arrangement, dramatization or other transformation of a work;5. distribution of the original or copies of a work to the public by sale, rental,

lending, or by any other transfer of ownership or possession;6. importation of the copies of a work;7. public display of the original or copies of a work;8. public performance of a work in any form or by any means;9. broadcasting of a work;10. retransmission of a work;11. communication to the public of a work.

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To sum up:The in-depth analysis of the legal basis for using and labelling of the

products designated as OER are in most cases national-legal framework based, though certain international agreements and principles are quite clear.

For our purposes, two main issues should be emphasized. Firstly, the legal basis thought quite strict in some cases, for the

purposes of teaching and learning, however, has a level of certain latitude and provides for freedom of action for teachers and especially learners.

Secondly, the teachers may not be informed about certain boundaries even in the context of relatively not strict legal limitations for using products if they are designated to be used as OER. Therefore further on, the results of pilot study are presented, with the following two issues at focus.

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Methodology of the empiric study. In order to investigate situation further, especially, with the focus on how teachers evaluate their own competence and their own readiness to use educational resources, and, most importantly, are they aware of the related legal considerations.

The study was designed as a quasi-action research. Firstly, 26 teachers in Lithuania were invited to join the series of seminars (in Spring 2015), financed by the LangOER project (2013 – 4107 / 001 - 001); (No. 543239-LLP1-1-2013-LV-KA2-KA2NW). Teachers all over Lithuania, but primarily from Kaunas (300 thous. inhabitants) were invited to the series of 3 seminars. The questionnaire data presented here is from the initial seminar with teachers: all 26 participants were asked to fill in the questionnaire and ask 3 more colleagues back in their schools to do the same. The convenience sampling, therefore, was used, the sampling which generated 72 responses. Later, after the three seminars ((20 contact hours totally), and in between-blended learning activities), another questionnaire was used to monitor, whether changes were achieved and of what nature. The data for the second wave of questionnaires is still being processed, and will be presented on other occasions.

For the first wave, as it was mentioned, the convenience sampling resulted in 72 responses; both closes and open type questions were used. The multiple choice answers (respondents were asked to choose three answers that reflect their opinion best), Likert scale and nominal scale were used. In some cases the percentage used for presentation of data in the paper reflect the proportion of respondents (N=72 (100%)), in some other cases (that will be indicated separately), the percentage reflects the total number of responses (therefore the N may be 208 (100%) or another number; that will be indicated next to each Figure).

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Respondents

11.1 1

1.17

7.8

elementary schooljunior highhigh school

Elementary school classes

Russian language

English language

Lithuanian language

Visual arts

Mathematics

Geography

Physics

Chemistry

Biology

Did not indicate

0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18

1111

1711

611

333

1114

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Lithuanian teachers about the OER in their professional life.

100% 80-99% 60-79% 40-59% 20-39% 10-19% 0-10%0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

0.0

11.1

36.1 36.1

11.12.8 0.0

Respondents (N=72 of respondents, which represents 100%) on the proportion, regarding to how much of materials are OER or OER based in their classes

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The teachers on the usefulness of employing OER in classes (N (total number of choices=172, which makes up 100%). Respondents were allowed to choose 2 out of presented 4 choices)

Makes a class more interest-ing

Makes students more active Is suitable for independent studies

incorporates visual signal, therefore is benefitial for

memory

enables the teaching process reflect realities of studnets'

life

makes teaching/learning diverse

0.00

5.00

10.00

15.00

20.00

25.00

30.00

35.00

40.00

34.88 27.9

127.9

1

4.65 4.65 2.33

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The teachers on specific purpose of OER (N (total number of choices=208, which makes up 100%). Respondents were allowed to choose 2 out of presented 5 choices)

What is the specific pedagogical purpose of internet sources in your classes

Plan of classe, other materials that I may directly use in my class

Visual aids, illustrations, that I may use in my class

When I find something useful but not entirely fitting, I make adjustments

I develop digital teaching/learning materials myslef

0.0 5.0 10.0 15.0 20.0 25.0 30.0 35.0

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Respondents (N=72 of respondents, which represents 100%) about whether they are aware of the existence of licencing procedure and whether they use it.

Do you know that the usage of internte sources (OER) is licenced?

Do you follow the licencing procedure?0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80 74

56

2644 YES

NO

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Respondents (N=72 of respondents, which represents 100%) on hoe they interpret themselves in relation to digital space.

I think that OER is very useful for teaching

I know the concept of OER and its contents

I am sufficiently competent in order to use OER in my teaching

I am competent in cooperating in digital space

I share the materials with my colleagues

0.0 20.0 40.0 60.0 80.0 100.0 120.0

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ConclusionsThe analysis of Lithuanian legal basis on the usage of digital products as OER

enables the following conclusions. Firstly, the legal basis thought quite strict in some cases, for the purposes of teaching and learning, however, has a level of certain latitude and provides for freedom of action for teachers and especially learners. Secondly, the teachers may not be informed about certain boundaries even in the context of relatively not strict legal limitations for using products if they are designated to be used as OER.

As an empiric data of a pilot study, which main limitation is the convenience sampling seems to indicate, Lithuanian teachers need educational support in both the dimensions, presented in a theoretical discourse.

Firstly, teachers acknowledge the necessity to use OER as a contemporary source of teaching materials. They think OER to have a motivating role for teaching; also, teachers believe that using OER helps to relate teaching materials better to everyday life of students.

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ConclusionsAs teachers teaching various subjects in a rare – Lithuanian language- participated in the survey, it is logical to find them using OER as mainly readymade recipes and for visualisation. There are not that many OER examples – textual resources - because of Lithuania being such a small country (therefore its pedagogical community is small too). The reliance on sources in other languages to some extent limits OER to a visual aid.

Another dimension emphasised in theoretical discourse was the fact that teachers may be in need of educational support to become better acquainted with the legal considerations of both using and producing OER. As it was emphasised, the pilot empiric survey substantiated the hypothesis, with an even more disconcerting results. Namely, it seems even if teachers are aware of the procedure itself, they do not use it. And, while the explanation may be the lack of time and energy for teachers to follow the procedure rather than conscious decision to ignore this procedure, nevertheless, such path indicates certain legal nihilism. As the society expects teachers to act as role models for students, in order to contribute to the development of a democratic, law-based society, this dimension deserves further attention, especially, as digital spaces become an overarching reality of a contemporary life.

 

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Thank you for the attention

Team of the project “Enhancing Teaching and Learning of Less used Languages trough OER/OEP“ (No. 543239-LLP-1-2013-1-LV-KA2NW) at the Faculty of Public Security at Mykolas Romeris University, Kaunas, Lithuania