Quality indicators within the use of open educational resources in higher education

A paradigm shift is emerging in higher education especially regarding how universities should address personalized and collaborative mobile learning. Experiences from three international benchmarking-projects through the European Association of Distance teaching Universities (EADTU), the European Centre for Strategic Management of Universities (ESMU) and the First dual mode benchmarking club on quality of e-learning in higher education carried out by Lund University showed that quality has to be valued in a holistic perspective, and to a higher extent from the learners’ perspectives and from learning dimensions. In these projects benchmarking was emphasized as a powerful strategic tool to assist decision-makers in improving quality and effectiveness of organizational processes and thereby reaching the position of the best international player in the higher education arena. The studies also showed that other quality dimensions have to be considered, as web 3.0, open educational resources (OER) and collaborative learning radically will extend the learning environment. The classroom will move out into the world, instead of (as in earlier technical revolutions) the technology being integrated into the traditional classroom [1-4]. From a recently completed Swedish project on OER in higher education it became obvious that the issue of resource sharing opens up much wider questions of a structural and cultural nature. Collaborative, ubiquitous-/open learning and cloud learning environments as well as demands from the millennium learners entering higher education will profoundly impact on the current university arena. In addition the global knowledge-based sustainable society will be of utmost importance [5]. This chapter will elaborate on challenges and consequences on the emerging movement on OER especially regarding quality from the learners’ perspectives. The chapter will also discuss the consequences of the needs of a changing cultural educational paradigm towards openness, personalization and collaboration and encourage to benchmarking on the use of OER and search for good practice