7.1 Floss, oer, equality and digital inclusion  (Page 7/10)

For teacher training curriculi … yes! - facilitating learning via cbpp. If learners have access, collaboration with peers will occur, the challenge forteachers is to become facilitators and keep the learners “productive” towards common goals. In South Africa, it has been our experience that it is difficult toconvince teachers to change their ways (another challenge) - building this into teacher training will ensure that the new crop of teachers is well primed.

I agree it would strike at equity issues: enabling people to empower themselves with knowledge and to be able to engage in cbpp.

One of Yochai Benkler’s claims is that “when you have the kind of information/cultural production system that wikipedia represents, injectedinto modern complex democracies, you can see significant improvements in autonomy, democracy and, to a limited extent but with some probability, social justice or at least a more justform of global development.” (YB, Wikimania 2006).

My concern is that most people in developing countries do not have access, so such benefits will not be as pronounced or immediate. In the interim, it might bebetter to assemble connected experts in the countries to produce base educational content of high quality and get that out there however possible (e.g. in printed form as Wayne suggests)- perhaps including peer production-type or social construction activities which do not require Internet access. Again, skilled facilitation may be necessary to achieve inclusivenessamong participants.

Re: would it help to generate a culture that supports and actively promotes peer development, … [and]… law that favors … community production, etc?

One thing we must do is question our assumptions, and I suspect there are some in the implicit affirmative answer to this question. Would it help what? (reduceinequalities of access to knowledge/learning?). Whom would it help in what way? (those that are ahead already may simply move further ahead together at a faster rate). When? (only afterpeople have physical access to computers and the Internet?). Why do we think this is important? (will it lead to a sustainable planet and world peace?).

A question which arises for me (which might help map out intermediate objectives) is “Why do we not have such a culture right now?” - Perhapswe do, but behaviour is modified by the restrictive legal and economic climate created by those with a vested interest in outdated business models (Wikipedia,Apache and GNU/Linux exist in spite of the dominant economic models and legal climate). The Creative Commons offersa way round the legal restraints, and we see a blossoming of new business models in the open source world (http://www.opensourcestrategies.org/ ) and in publishing (e.g. (External Link) ).

However, there is still a need to counter the pervading overly restrictive copyright regime.

So, I agree, it would help to embed cbpp activities across the curriculum, and to use FLOSS and free/libre/open resources for education as examples, etc.