Skip to Main Content

Open Pedagogy

Open Pedagogy Defined

 

Open Pedagogy  is "a site of praxis, a place where theories about learning, teaching, technology, and social justice enter into a conversation with each other and inform the development of educational practices and structures."

Open pedagogy leverages open technologies and licenses to transform approaches to education. In the tradition of constructivist, connected, and critical pedagogies, it is an educational orientation that centers on learners' engagement with their learning, broader publics, and knowledge construction.  

Examples: visit our collection of real-world examples of open pedagogy in the classroom. 

Tools: visit our collection of tools and technologies that support open pedagogy. 

Learn more: explore additional resources and readings gathered for you. 

Open Pedagogy Benefits

Sewall Hall

Teachers & Students in Open Pedagogy

  • Students have agency in directing or molding their learning, assignments, and work. 
  • Students share work beyond their instructor. 
  • Students approach unresolved or authentic problems. 
  • Teachers find and create content that gives space for student contribution.
  • Teachers abandon an expert stance in favor of student growth and participation.
  • Teachers respect difference and inclusion in classroom content and activities.
  • Teachers and learners jointly explore in a mutual quest for learning.

Adapted from Jesse Stommel. (2015). Open Door Classroom & Bruff, D. (2013). Students as Producers: An Introduction. Vanderbilt University.

Values of Open Pedagogy

  • Access and equity: a commitment to reducing barriers that prevent equitable access to education, including economic, technical, social, cultural, and political factors.
  • Community and connection: a commitment to facilitating connections across the boundaries of learning experiences, classrooms, campuses, countries, communities, and viewpoints. 
  • Agency and ownership: a commitment to protecting agency and ownership of one's own learning experiences, choices of expression, and degrees of participation.
  • Risk and responsibility:  a commitment to interrogate tools and practices that mediate learning, knowledge building, and sharing.

From Sinkinson, C. (2018). The Values of Open Pedagogy. EDUCAUSE Review. 

Open Pedagogy Videos

Overview of Open Pedagogy

Rajiv Jhangiani on 'Enhancing Pedagogy via Open Educational Practices'

Open Pedagogy with Wikis

Janette Bulkan, University of British Columbia

Open Pedagogy for Voice

David Gaertner, University of British Columbia

Open Pedagogy for Participation

Christina Hendricks, University of British Columbia

Open Pedagogy for Commons

Jon Beasley on Wikipedia