Hegarty (2015) identifies arc-of-life learning, which is “a seamless process that occurs throughout life when participants engage in open and collaborative networks, communities, and openly shared repositories of information in a structured way to create their own culture of learning,” as the foundation for open pedagogy. Hegarty lists eight attributes of an open pedagogy model of teaching and learning: Participatory Technologies, People, Openness, Trust, Innovation and Creativity, Sharing Ideas and Resources, Connected Community, Learner-Generated, Reflective Practice, and Peer Review. These overlapping attributes are essential to achieving a collaborative learner-centered curriculum.
Focusing on one of the aforementioned attributes - Connected Community - is the primary driving force for how we as faculty think about and apply open pedagogy in our respective courses. We believe that current and future educators must reconceptualize existing definitions of open pedagogy to prioritize “connected community” in order to empower students. Open pedagogy necessitates a focus on the value of “community” and the shared collective use of resources and knowledge. Connected community involves acknowledging and supporting the student as a whole person and respecting the knowledge and experiences that they bring to the classroom. Connected community is not limited to just the members of the classroom; it extends to the communities and networks of which students are members. In this way, learning does not take place in silos or should be compartmentalized. Course content and students’ lived experiences work in tandem and are interrelated.
For us and our students, community connectedness through shared learning experiences can be constructed within and beyond the classroom. We also encourage the strategic use of open pedagogical approaches and corresponding OER tools to best fit particular student populations, disciplines, and institutions.
Based on our experiences with First-Year Learning Communities, core curriculum courses, and advanced upper-level undergraduate courses at an Hispanic-Serving Institution in South Texas, this presentation will focus on (1) the relationship between open pedagogy and OER tools, (2) retooling existing definitions of open pedagogy to center “community,” and (3) providing examples of practical applications using this centered approach in and out of the classroom. We hope to facilitate discussions around navigating multiple and diverse cultural identities and spaces, leverage the strengths of individuals and groups, the power of sharing to connect, the value of stories and nuances, and the importance of kindness and compassion for community building.
After participating in this session, attendees will be able to:
- DESCRIBE AND REDEFINE the definition and attributes of "open pedagogy" for different student populations, disciplines, and institutions
- SUMMARIZE examples of using "open pedagogy" in the classroom, office hours, and assessments
- FORMULATE ideas for creating or revising their own courses based on "open pedagogy" and "connected communities"
