Forging new pathways of research and innovation in open and distance learning

Credit, Trust and Open Education
Katherine Sutherland
• digital learning as “a process of way-finding, social sense-making” (George Siemens);
• “situated learning” and “communities of practice” (Lave & Wenger);
• “educational ecosystems” (Richard Ludlow).
These are exciting ideas, but they only have value if the credentials they lead to also have
value.
Conclusion & areas for further study
As trustees of the students’ investments of time and money in their educations, the answers to
the questions above are pressing and land squarely on the shoulders of educators involved in
open educations systems.
Further development of the research would use mixed methods to answer the questions
above, including:
• Interviews with open and traditional educators regarding trust and credit in open
education;
• Interviews with open and traditional students regarding trust and credit in open
education;
• Analysis of open student success in both further educational attainment and employment,
in collaboration with IPA departments, initially at TRU and later including Athabasca in
Canada;
• Further analysis of open student success in both further educational attainment and
employment, in collaboration with IPA departments.
At this poster session, I would be seeking ideas from research colleagues about methods for
further study.
References
1. Cote, J.; & Allahar, A. (2007). Ivory tower blues: a university system in crisis. Toronto:
University of Toronto Press.
2. Coulter, E.M. (1951). College Life in the Old South. Athens: University of Georgia Press.
3. Foote, A. L. (2015). Oral exams: Preparing for and passing candidacy, qualifying and
graduate defences. Amsterdam: Academic Press.
4. Harris, J. (2002). Brief history of American academic credit system: A recipe for incoherence
in student learning. Retrieved from ERIC http://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED470030
5. Kamenetz, A. (2010). DIY U: Edupunks, edupreneurs, and the coming transformation of
higher education. White River Junction, VT: Chelsea Green Publishing.
322 Reaching from the roots – 9 th EDEN Research Workshop Proceedings, 2016, Oldenburg
ISBN 978-615-5511-12-7