ELIG Calls on EU to Promote High-Quality Learning
The recommendations summarized in the Declaration represent an industry perspective on some of the most pressing issues facing the learning-content publishing industry today. Three main issues were identified in the Declaration: new opportunities and business models, learning research priorities, and learning technologies and standards.
In regard to new opportunities and business models, the Declaration mentions the following topics (among others):
- Supporting experimentation in new business models for accessing and downloading learning materials for mobile devices.
- Encouraging partnerships among educational publishers, learning-system providers, and all stakeholders in the education and learning processes.
The topics related to learning research priorities and learning technologies and standards include:
- Funding to support R&D in device-specific content delivery is needed, in particular, content aimed at maximizing the different characteristics of mobile devices and classroom devices such as digital boards, e-books, and all other e-educational tools.
- Facilitation and promotion of learning technologies and learning standards must become a concerted effort of the learning and publishing industries, the official de-jure European (CEN) and international (ISO)standardization bodies, and global standards consortia (e.g. IMS, AICC & OASIS).
- Harmonization between American and European standards leading to international consensus is critical and should not only extend to include new EU member states but should also enable other (mostly Eastern) European countries to adopt the harmonized standards.
The DECOM Declaration calls on all stakeholders in the learning process, the learning industry itself, regulators, and policy makers to consider urgently those actions they might take in response to the recommendations. ELIG will be working within its Public Policy Group, to begin this process, which will include a call upon the European Commission for stronger content-related policy actions to promote high-quality learning resources for Europe.
