The challenges facing the world are mirrored in Higher Education Institutions (HEIs). Globally there is deepening inequality, wars and countries in conflict and the crisis we all face through climate change. All these wicked problems require action from all citizens of the globe to recognise and take responsibility to find solutions. HEIs must tackle inequality in education, raise awareness and knowledge of wars and climate change. There is inequality not only in access to education but also in the varying degrees of quality of education and aspect that needs to be address to achieve SDG 4. These challenges are complex and require multiple strategies. These challenges are ‘everyone’s business’ and open education is the glue that can bind them all.
The University of Cape Town (UCT) has implemented open education projects and research since 2007. More recently, since 2018, the Digital Open Textbooks for Development (DOT4D) initiative that has explored the role of open textbooks for social justice at UCT. This work was driven by an imperative to remedy economic, cultural and political injustices in Higher Education through addressing issues related to access, cultural recognition and representation of marginalized voices in textbooks and other teaching materials.
In an effort to form a community of South African open educators a symposium, ‘Future of open education in higher education in South Africa’ was hosted at UCT and included key contributions from UNESCO Chairs in Open Education in South Africa (June 2024). The symposium also included short inputs from UNESCO Chairs (France, Tunisia & Lebanon), members of the newly formed UNITWIN Network on Open Education (UNOE). A crucial part of day’s events was a ‘Futures workshop’ facilitated by a UNESCO chair in Futures thinking from the University of Stellenbosch.
In addition, the DOT4D initiative launched a ‘student fellowship’ program to include students in the organisation, participation and development of outputs from the event (Funded by the Hewlett foundation and GOGN). Students were encouraged to reflect individually and in focus groups on their different roles in the co-creation of this event.
Drawing on the results of the futures planning workshop and reflections of students from the symposium event this presentation will discuss aspirations for the future of open education is South Africa and it will explore ways through which student-staff partnerships can address injustice in the classroom and injustice in learning materials. It also addresses institutional realities and provides recommendations for student, staff and higher education institutions wanting to engage in or support of open education.
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[Session 6B]: Global Access and EquityAuthor KeywordsStudent partnerships, Social justice, Futures planning, Community
