Funding Open Educational Resources in Higher Education: A South African Public Policy Perspective
Abstract
:1. Introduction and Background
“a free, irrevocable, worldwide, right of access to, and a license to copy, use, distribute, transmit and display the work publicly and to make and distribute derivative works, in any digital medium for any responsible purpose, subject to proper attribution of authorship”.
The Transforming Academic Environment
2. Materials and Methods
2.1. Critical Theory Paradigm
2.2. Population and Sampling
- A South African governmental and parliamentary level legal, regulatory, strategic, operational, and policy-level document;
- Produced between 1996 and 2022;
- Is officially recognized as an authentic government document;
- Has an effect of identifying, describing, explaining, commenting, discussing OER funding, research funding, or any terms that may imply OER funding;
- Is publicly available from the government, government agencies, and parliamentary websites.
3. Data Analysis
Conceptual Framework
4. Review of the Literature
4.1. OER Funding Motives
4.2. What Needs to Be Funded?
4.3. Possible OER Funding Sources
5. Findings
5.1. Government Policy: OER Funding in South Africa
5.2. White Paper for Post-School Education and Training 2013
“The DHET will support efforts that invest a larger proportion of total expenditure in the design and development of high-quality learning resources, as a strategy for increasing and assuring the quality of provision across the entire post-school system”.(p. 54)
5.3. The South African Institute of Vocation and Training (SAIVCET)
5.4. National Research Foundation Amendment Act 19 of 2018
5.5. The Research Outputs Policy 2015
“The focus of subsidy is on ‘scholarly publishing’ which refers to publications by scholars (academics and experts) for a niche market consisting mainly of academics and researchers (not normally students)”.(p. 5)
5.6. Further Education and Training Colleges Amendment Act 3 of 2012 and the Further Education and Training Colleges Act 16 of 2006
“PROVIDE optimal opportunities for learning, the creation of knowledge and the development of intermediate to high-level skills in keeping with international standards of academic and technical quality”.(p. 3)
“Subject to the Constitution and this Act, the Minister must, after consultation with the Council of Education Ministers and the Minister of Finance, determine minimum norms and standards for the funding of public colleges”.
5.7. NSFAS and the NSFAS Act 56 of 1999 (RSA 1999)
5.8. National Skills Development Strategy III
“This requires the development of research capacity, particularly research related to building new knowledge linked to sector and national industrial plans. The Department of Higher Education and Training, in collaboration with HEIs and SETAs, will be encouraging increased capacity to conduct research, as well as the establishment of sector-relevant research projects”.(p. 14)
NSDS Outcome 4.3.3: The academic staff at colleges are able to offer relevant education and training of the required quality.(p. 17)
5.9. Open Learning Policy Framework for Post-School Education and Training
6. Discussion
7. Conclusions and Recommendations
Author Contributions
Funding
Conflicts of Interest
References
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Response Options | Africa | Arab States | Asia and Pacific | Europe and North America | Latin America and Caribbean | Total Across All Regions |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Yes, through initiatives by institution and engaged individuals | 50% | 11% | 52% | 40% | 41% | 43% |
Yes, through specific projects or programs with public funding | 25% | 11% | 52% | 55% | 46% | 41% |
Yes, through specific projects or programs with private funding | 33% | 0% | 26% | 10% | 9% | 18% |
Yes, through government initiatives including specific measures and incentives | 17% | 22% | 39% | 35% | 23% | 28% |
No | 8% | 33% | 13% | 5% | 32% | 16% |
Yes, otherwise | 33% | 22% | 17% | 30% | 5% | 21% |
Response Options | Africa | Arab States | Asia and Pacific | Europe and North America | Latin America and Caribbean | Total across all Regions |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Open and flexible learning opportunities | 67% | 44% | 57% | 45% | 64% | 57% |
Increased efficiency and quality of learning resources | 58% | 44% | 52% | 45% | 41% | 49% |
Cost-efficiency of OER | 50% | 44% | 48% | 35% | 46% | 45% |
The innovative potential of OER. | 63% | 33% | 48% | 35% | 46% | 47% |
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Ndebele, N.C.; Masuku, M.M.; Mlambo, V.H. Funding Open Educational Resources in Higher Education: A South African Public Policy Perspective. Soc. Sci. 2023, 12, 49. https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci12010049
Ndebele NC, Masuku MM, Mlambo VH. Funding Open Educational Resources in Higher Education: A South African Public Policy Perspective. Social Sciences. 2023; 12(1):49. https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci12010049
Chicago/Turabian StyleNdebele, Nduduzo C., Mfundo Mandla Masuku, and Victor H. Mlambo. 2023. "Funding Open Educational Resources in Higher Education: A South African Public Policy Perspective" Social Sciences 12, no. 1: 49. https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci12010049
APA StyleNdebele, N. C., Masuku, M. M., & Mlambo, V. H. (2023). Funding Open Educational Resources in Higher Education: A South African Public Policy Perspective. Social Sciences, 12(1), 49. https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci12010049