Integrating Open Digital Pedagogy in STEM Education

Wahyu Setioko, Head of Primary Teacher Education, BINUS University, Indonesia

Wahyu Setioko, Head of Primary Teacher Education, BINUS University, Indonesia

Open Digital Pedagogy can be considered one of the promising classroom solutions for STEM learning, particularly in the Asia Pacific region. This pedagogical approach emphasizes sharing, collaboration, and active learning. It combines the principles of Open Pedagogy and Digital Pedagogy to create an inclusive, collaborative, and technology-enhanced learning environment.

Two main characteristics of Open Digital Pedagogy are using Open Educational Resources (OER) and collaborative participatory technologies. First, educators can incorporate OER into their curricula and classroom learning to provide students with free and open access to high-quality textbooks, videos, and interactive modules. Several examples of OER include open textbooks, materials on OER Commons, public domain archives, and open-source platforms like PhET that provide free and openly licensed interactive STEM simulations and digital hands-on activities for students to engage with complex STEM concepts.

Second, educators can use participatory technologies, such as wikis, blogs, and platforms, to promote student collaboration and knowledge creation. Educators can design projects where students contribute to creating open educational resources. For instance, students can develop openly licensed educational videos, design infographics, or write Wikipedia articles on STEM topics. Such learning activities not only reinforce student understanding of the STEM content but help them build ownership and pride in their learning outcomes that contribute to knowledge for the public.

The Benefits of Digital Pedagogy

Open Digital Pedagogy offers valuable benefits for students and educators. For students, it promotes active learning, critical thinking, collaboration, and problem-solving skills. By participating in the creation of educational content, they move from being mere consumers of information (passive learners) to becoming creators and collaborators of information (active learners). For educators, Open Digital Pedagogy provides opportunities for professional development and collaboration. Educators can share teaching resources and teaching practices with peers globally. It fosters a community of practice that continually improves the knowledge and quality of STEM education.

Working Together for STEM Education in the Asia Pacific

However, to maximize the potential of Open Digital Pedagogy in STEM education, particularly in Asia Pacific, some technical barriers need to be addressed. Limited internet access may hinder the participatory and collaborative teaching and learning process using technologies and connected networks. Moreover, a lack of digital literacy and understanding of copyrights and open licenses has also been found by scholars as another challenge in implementing open pedagogy. To facilitate a more seamless adoption of OER and participatory technologies in the classrooms, educational institutions should invest in infrastructure development and provide training to empower teachers and students on technology and digital literacy. Recent technological advancements, such as artificial intelligence and virtual reality, offer huge potential in leveraging the quality and quantity of OER to create even more immersive learning experiences. Consequently, educators need to learn and embrace these promising technologies.

Open Digital Pedagogy may transform STEM education, particularly in Asia Pacific. Nevertheless, cross-institutional collaborations are needed to lead the development of comprehensive, inclusive, and contextual open-access STEM curricula and learning materials tailored to Asia Pacific regions. In fact, the majority of available OER in STEM education still comes from Western countries, which may not be culturally and contextually relevant to the Asia Pacific community. Educational content from Asia Pacific is undeniably underrepresented in the body of knowledge of STEM education. Thus, to fully realize the potential of Open Digital Pedagogy, educators, leaders, and education institutions in the Asia Pacific must embrace this potential approach and work together for effective implementation.