What are Closed and Open Educational Systems?

The mesmer (Multimode Educational Services for Mass Education and Regeneration) has been my hobby horse for sometime.  I just decided to start blogging about it...hoping that somebody may benefit from these musings.

There are primarily two kinds of Educational Systems: Open and Closed. An Open Educational System is characterised by integration, inclusion and cooperation; Closed Systems on the other hand are characterised by differentiation, exclusion(or filtering) and competition.

Understanding Closed Educational Systems

As a Learner (participant) you need to "enter" a closed system.  Closed systems have boundaries; you are either inside or outside, further, there are entry and exit criteria. Once inside there are a number of things-to-do, which are based on the system's "needs", learners who cannot perform as per the system's needs are compelled to exit.

These exit and entry criteria form the bedrock of a closed educational system. Call them exams, interviews, tests, assessments et cetera, eventually learners (participants) who wish to engage with the system must meet the criteria put down by the system. The system does not serve the learner, instead, the learner must be "deserving" to be part of the system. A closed educational system is not learner-centric; it is not meant to be learner-centric! A Closed Educational System serves itself!

An Educational System is part of a socio-economic framework and needs to cater to individuals and societies in a holistic way. Be it employment opportunities, pursuit of individual interests, economic growth and well-being, health and happiness, et cetera the educational system plays a pivotal role. Closed Educational Systems by definition cannot address the dynamic needs of society or individuals. Lacking a holistic approach they end up creating silos of specialists!

The Educational System needs to serve as an enabler - enabling individuals, groups (teams) and organisations to explore without inhibitions, feel the delights of discovery and the eventual satisfaction of applying that which they learnt.

The analogy between an educational system and an assembly line (or transformation tunnel), where learners enter "raw" and exit "ripe" is a perspective belonging to the Closed Educational System.
 

The Concept of an Open Educational System

You are always part of an Open Educational System! An Open Educational System as the name suggests is not characteristised by any boundaries; there are no entry and exit criteria. There is no inside and outside! Everybody is part of it!...

More in the next post