The OPAL Awards for quality and innovation through open educational practices recognize outstanding achievements in OER policy, promotion and use which have resulted in the improvement of quality and innovation in educational organizations. Submissions are invited in three categories; bodies which influence policy, institutions and learning contexts.
The OPAL Awards are developed by the Open Educational Quality (OPAL) Initiative, a consortium which works to promote open educational practices – practices which support the production, use and reuse of open educational resources (OER). Open educational practices help learners, educational professionals, organizational leaders, and policy makers improve quality in higher education and adult education and training.
Winning entries
Winners and highly commended entries will be selected by juries of prominent experts and will be announced at Online Educa Berlin, Germany, 30 November – 2 December 2011. Award winners will receive a plaque and a contribution of EUR 300 to make a short film which will be shown at the awards ceremony and may be used for self-promotion. Award winners and highly commended submissions will receive significant international exposure through the OPAL Initiative website and publications, and through the networks of each of the consortium members. They will also receive a unique logo and animated graphic for self-promotion.
The deadline for submission of entries to the OPAL Awards is midnight CET on 23 October 2011.
The OPAL Awards Secretariat is hosted by the International Council for Open and Distance Education (ICDE) and the OPAL Initiative is being implemented through a consortium including UNESCO, ICDE, the European Foundation for Quality in E-Learning (EFQUEL), and a number of European universities. The Lifelong Learning Programme of the European Commission is the main funding body for this initiative, which is lead by the University of Duisburg-Essen, Germany.
A repeat session of the first Consultative Group online meeting was held on Tuesday, 7 June for participants from Asia and the Pacific, Latin America and the Caribbean, and North America.
An Oxford-style debate on whether OER should favour commercial use is currently underway online. Hosted by UNESCO and the OER Foundation, interested parties are invited to join the discussion and contribute their ideas and relevant experiences for fostering a sustainable OER future.
The Open Educational Quality (OPAL) Initiative announces the launch of tools for organizations and individuals to self-assess their level of adoption and integration of Open Educational Practices (OEP). The OEP Guide includes a maturity model, detailed description of the concept, and description of the elements which constitute Open Educational Practices.
