Open eBook library for basic education was built in cooperation in Mikkeli
Digitisation creates opportunities for new types of knowledge production and learning. Online platforms can be used to produce knowledge in cooperation and in a timely manner, and open licenses make educational materials available to all.
This opportunity is being taken by Perusopetuksen wikiloikka -project, whose aim is to build an open textbook collection for use in basic education. Learning materials are deposited in the Finnish-language wikilibrary, where they can be further developed, built upon and edited by those interested, in the same way as with Wikipedia.
At the Eduhakkerit and Otava Folk High School #YooJoo Summer Days (12–13 June), teachers from all grades gathered to discuss individual teaching methods and share experiences. Held in Mikkeli, the event also gave visitors an opportunity to get acquainted with the Perusopetuksen wikiloikka and participate in an editathon, where learning materials were produced collaboratively.
Photo: Thinkstock
At the editathon, participants collaborate on producing and editing materials on a selected subject, usually on a wiki platform. The purpose of this is to encourage collaborative activity and increase the amount of high-quality, open knowledge.
The #YooJoo Summer Days event focused especially on the editing of materials for the Finnish language and literature learning library, with the structure of the Wikilibrary being developed to suit the needs of teachers and students. Over twenty teachers put their learned heads together to create materials for use throughout Finland.
– The Wikiproject attracted a great deal of interest and was a big hit at the #YooJoo event. During the event, several issues were discussed regarding the purpose of the wikiloikka project - for example, the procurement of books for schools and the ownership and editing of materials were hot topics, says Tero Toivainen, a representative of IT-kouluttajat ry and Wikimedia Finland.
Perusopetuksen wikiloikka is a CSC – IT Center for Science project, whose aim is to establish a culture of sharing digital and open content in basic education. In addition to CSC, Tivia ry, IT-kouluttajat ry, Wikimedia Finland and LifeLearn Platforms participated in the nationwide collaboration, which started at the beginning of the year.
The Wikilibrary's open material bank is being built in accordance with the national curriculum from 2014 and holds a CC BY-SA license. Among other things, this allows for the distribution and refinement of materials, provided that the original source is credited.
Anyone may join in basic education material collaborations. Putting proven learning materials into circulation contributes to the creation of an open learning library.