PROMOTING ACADEMIC RESOURCES IN SOCIETY (PARIS) - OPENING UP ACCESS TO LEARNING RESOURCES FOR CARE PROVIDERS OF CHILDREN WITH COCHLEAR IMPLANTS

Through the JISC/HEA funded Promoting Academic Resources in Society (PARiS) project, the Open Nottingham team at The University of Nottingham is working in partnership with the Ear foundation on the collection and release of Open Educational Resources (OER). The Ear Foundation is a third sector organisation helping deaf people and their families make the best use of technology to improve hearing and communication. This is achieved through a combination of education, research and advocacy. The PARiS project supports an identified organisational need at the Ear Foundation to expand access to training for their target audience of teachers, parents and care providers of children with cochlear implants. Public and private sector funding has been directed to the development of cochlear implant technology and surgical/scientific activity but little to the community – at home and school – the Foundation addresses this.

Currently the Foundation provides a series of face-to-face workshops to support teachers and care givers of deaf students nationally, as well as the wider mainstream teacher community as appropriate. Approximately 3,500 delegates per year enrol on the Ear Foundation’s education programme. However, with over 80,000 deaf students with cochlear implants worldwide demand inevitably outstrips the available resources. Through the PARiS project, the University is working with the Foundation to widen access through the open publication of learning materials for core subject areas. The topics covered promote understanding and improve learning opportunities for children living with cochlear implants worldwide, including: overview of cochlear implantation; impact of deafness on communication and language learning (educational management & deaf children); challenges of using technology at home and school; maximising the benefit of the technology in education; monitoring progress; and the family role in language learning. These are unique resources not readily available in open formats.

In addition to the benefits for the target audience that can be realised through the open publication of these resources, the project is also examining the potential for OER to support sustainability models within the third sector. For example, by examining the potential for OER to complement fee paid face-to-face workshops and accreditation and by exploring the issues and challenges faced in initiating an open publication model at the organisation.

This presentation provides an overview of the project and discusses the pitfalls and benefits of moving Open Educational Resources into non-traditional areas. It offers a case study for how OER might support commercial activity within the third sector and will be of interest to those in the sector and related areas engaged and considering engaging with an OER strategy.