Patterns for higher education international cooperation fostered by Open Educational Resources

Abstract

The paper explores the extent to which the use of Open Educational Resources (OER) can enhance international partnerships among universities. In order to validate the hypothesis that the use of OER can positively contribute to transformational partnerships, we have collected cases of OER-enhanced international cooperation and we have classified them in six patterns: OER contextualisation, knowledge sharing on Open Education, collaboration through MOOC platforms, virtual mobility schemes, collaborative open courses development, and collaborative accreditation of non-formal learning. Following an analysis of these patterns through the lenses of institutional engagement and transformational impact, we argue that the use of OER can have an potential transformational impact on the way universities collaborate and work in increasingly complex and international contexts, mainly thanks to the collaborative knowledge building and the stakeholders' engagement dynamics that the use of OER can foster.