Changes

ICTs can be used for planning and implementing training programmes through Training Management Systems. Information can also be easily shared within and across institutions to facilitate education administration, for instance circulars or orders can be shared over mail or phone based communities.  

ICTs can be used for planning and implementing training programmes through Training Management Systems. Information can also be easily shared within and across institutions to facilitate education administration, for instance circulars or orders can be shared over mail or phone based communities.  

===Open Educational Resources===

===Open Educational Resources===

The National Curriculum Framework 2005 speaks of contextual, inclusive and meaningful education. For these ideas to come true, relevant learning resources must be available for the students (teachers) and teachers (teacher-educator).  These resources must be contextual, easily available, allow for learners to modify and adapt for their requirements.  

The National Curriculum Framework 2005 speaks of contextual, inclusive and meaningful education. For these ideas to come true, relevant learning resources must be available for the students (teachers) and teachers (teacher-educator).  These resources must be contextual, easily available and allow for learners to modify and adapt for their requirements.  

Currently, textbook may be the most important resource for many teachers, if not the only resource.  This resource is limited, made once in a year and represent on set of thoughts.  The text based resource does not incorporate audio visual resources, and may not address multiple learning needs. External resources, though available, are also largely non-digital, expensive and cannot easily be adapted for local needs and contexts. For critical and diverse perspectives to develop, multiple resources must be available and it must be possible for knowledge to be constructed and shared from multiple contexts. Otherwise, it is possible that only some forms of knowledge will remain important and other will die out. For knowledge sharing to freely happen, educational resources must become freely available, freely shareable and freely changeable to adapt to local contexts and needs.  Open Educational Resources (OERs), as they are called are such learning resources. Open Educational Resources are digital resources that are available freely, in multiple formats – text, audio, video – to allow for multiple learner needs.

Currently, textbook may be the most important resource for many teachers.  This resource is limited, made once in a year and represent on set of thoughts.  The text based resource does not incorporate audio visual resources, and may not address multiple learning needs. External resources, though available, are also largely non-digital, expensive and cannot easily be adapted for local needs and contexts. For critical and diverse perspectives to develop, multiple resources must be made available and it must be possible for knowledge to be constructed and shared from multiple contexts. Otherwise, it is possible that only some forms of knowledge will remain important and other will die out. For knowledge sharing to freely happen, educational resources must become freely available, freely shareable and freely changeable to adapt to local contexts and needs.  Open Educational Resources (OERs), as they are called are such learning resources. Open Educational Resources are digital resources that are available freely, in multiple formats – text, audio, video – to allow for multiple learner needs.

As per [http://www.unesco.org/new/fileadmin/MULTIMEDIA/HQ/CI/CI/pdf/Events/English_Paris_OER_Declaration.pdf UNESCO], OER are "teaching, learning and research materials in any medium, digital or otherwise, that reside in the public domain or have been released under an open license that permits no-cost access, use, adaptation and redistribution by others with no or limited restrictions."<br>OER became a global phenomenon when [http://en.wikipedia.org Wikipedia] was launched in 2001, this is an encyclopedia on the internet, where knowledge is created and shared by many many people and not restricted to one person.  Following this, [http://web.mit.edu/ Massachusetts Institute of Technology], a leading university in the United States of America, released many of its course materials for free called [https://ocw.mit.edu/index.htm Open Courseware] (2001).  In teacher education also, educational resources were developed collaboratively by a programme for Teacher Education in Sub Saharan Africa and published [http://www.tessafrica.net on-line]. These are some of the early initiatives in OERs; now many more OERs are available across the world teaching and learning.  In India, National Programme on Technology Enhanced Learning ([http://nptel.iitk.ac.in NPTEL]) and IGNOU have offered many of the courses as OER.

As per [http://www.unesco.org/new/fileadmin/MULTIMEDIA/HQ/CI/CI/pdf/Events/English_Paris_OER_Declaration.pdf UNESCO], OER are "teaching, learning and research materials in any medium, digital or otherwise, that reside in the public domain or have been released under an open license that permits no-cost access, use, adaptation and redistribution by others with no or limited restrictions."<br>OER became a global phenomenon when [http://en.wikipedia.org Wikipedia] was launched in 2001, this is an encyclopedia on the internet, where knowledge is created and shared by many people and not restricted to one person.  Following this, [http://web.mit.edu/ Massachusetts Institute of Technology], a leading university in the United States of America, released many of its course materials for free called [https://ocw.mit.edu/index.htm Open Courseware] (2001).  In teacher education, educational resources were developed collaboratively by a programme for Teacher Education in Sub Saharan Africa and published [http://www.tessafrica.net on-line]. These are few early initiatives in OERs; now many more OERs are available across the world teaching and learning.  In India, National Programme on Technology Enhanced Learning ([http://nptel.iitk.ac.in NPTEL]) and IGNOU have offered many of the courses as OER.

====Principles of OERs====

====Principles of OERs====

Open Educational Resources are those resources that allow the following four kinds of freedoms to learners/ users.  These “Freedoms” are as follows:

Open Educational Resources are those resources that allow the following four kinds of freedoms to learners/ users.  These “Freedoms” are as follows: