Hochschulforschung | Higher Education Research
Open sources for higher education
Do information technologies change the
definition of Public and Private Goods?
Thomas Pfeffer
thomas.pfeffer@uni-klu.ac.at
Pfeffer, Open Sources in Higher Education
17th CHER conference 17.-19. Sept. 2004, Enschede NL
Hochschulforschung | Higher Education Research
Aim
• Public/private debate:
expenditures, not only funding
• Misconception: ICTs = commercialisation
• ICTs can create new public domains for
knowledge resources:
– scholarly publications
– course materials
– academic software
Pfeffer, Open Sources in Higher Education
17th CHER conference 17.-19. Sept. 2004, Enschede NL
Hochschulforschung | Higher Education Research
ICTs = commercialisation ?
• Problem
– HEI/scholars are main producers + main consumers
– Prices turn to costs for HEIs and to profit for commercial
vendors
• Assumptions of the “new economy”
– ICTs industrialise and commodify HE
– Only the most profitable HEI will survive
• Consequences
– Commercialisation taken for granted, regarded an obligation
Pfeffer, Open Sources in Higher Education
17th CHER conference 17.-19. Sept. 2004, Enschede NL
Hochschulforschung | Higher Education Research
Scholarly publications (1)
basic characteristics
• Not-for-profit:
no compensation for authors + reviewers
• Motive: gain reputation and attention
• Open exchange essential for scientific
communication and quality control
• Prices should cover transaction costs only
Pfeffer, Open Sources in Higher Education
17th CHER conference 17.-19. Sept. 2004, Enschede NL
Hochschulforschung | Higher Education Research
Scholarly publications (2)
current crisis
• Oligopoly of commercial publishers
• Inelastic demand
• Rocketing prices
(journals +8.5%, CPI +3.3% p.a.)
• Declining variety of consumption
• Restrictive copyright policies
Pfeffer, Open Sources in Higher Education
17th CHER conference 17.-19. Sept. 2004, Enschede NL
Hochschulforschung | Higher Education Research
Scholarly publications (3)
ICT-based solutions
Characteristics
– ICTs reduce transaction costs
– Online archives ~ online publications
– Open access shifts costs from consumer to producer
Types of open access repositories
– Self-archives (eScholarship, RePEc)
– Free online journals (EIoP, BioMed Central)
– Pre-print servers (ArXiv)
Pfeffer, Open Sources in Higher Education
17th CHER conference 17.-19. Sept. 2004, Enschede NL
Hochschulforschung | Higher Education Research
Course materials
Characteristics
– eLearning in HE: learning materials required
– New form of scholarly publication
(quotations, reviews, sharing, etc.)
Types of open access initiatives
– Single institution (MIT OpenCourseWare)
– Discipline driven (The Harvey Project)
– Institutional network (Merlot.org)
Pfeffer, Open Sources in Higher Education
17th CHER conference 17.-19. Sept. 2004, Enschede NL
Hochschulforschung | Higher Education Research
Academic software
Characteristics
– Open Source code: open for critique and improvement
– Cost containment
(no royalties, only development + maintenance)
– open standards to facilitate exchange
Types open source software collections
– Single issue (SPARC)
– Loose collection (CampusSource)
– Comprehensive architecture (The Sakai Project)
Pfeffer, Open Sources in Higher Education
17th CHER conference 17.-19. Sept. 2004, Enschede NL
Hochschulforschung | Higher Education Research
Conclusions & recommendations
• ICT-based open sources in HE have to be
claimed, established and defended
– Claim: public status with well defined licences
– Establish: repositories, services, quality control
– Defend: against infringement and shortage of funds
• Public goods do not come for free
– Address production and consumption as
connected academic responsibilities
– Shift expenditures from consumption to production
• Join collective initiatives and networks
Pfeffer, Open Sources in Higher Education
17th CHER conference 17.-19. Sept. 2004, Enschede NL