Lifelong learning of teachers and Open
Education Resources: Lithuanian case
Vaiva Zuzevičiūtė
(co-authors and co-implementers: Laima Ruibytė, Rūta Adamonienė, Aušra Stepanovienė, Birutė
Pranevičienė, Rasa Dobržinskienė)
Faculty of Public Security, Mykolas Romeris University, Lithuania
1
The Final Conference of Langoer: “Enhancing Teaching and Learning of Less
used Languages trough OER/OEP“ (No. 543239-LLP-1-2013-1-LV-KA2NW)
Open Education: Promoting Diversity for European Languages
2016, September 26-27
Brussels

Parameters:
 The aim of this paper is to discuss the pressures and possible educational
support for teachers who face necessity to meet expectations at least at two
dimensions regarding open educational resources (namely: to produce a
qualitative piece of OER; and to learn to share and use OER with regards
to the legal framework).
 Methods of critical analysis of sources and a pilot empiric survey
(quantitative: questionnaire) were employed for the development of this
presentation.
2

Open Education Resources in a contemporary
teacher’s work
 Sometimes I feel as in the room of mirrors…. Everyone speaks about the
necessity to use technologies out there… the head teacher dedicates half of
each meeting for the question… but, actually, there are fewer opportunities to
actually learn to use them (authors’ note: the technologies)... I would say
that there is a paradox - instead of talking so much about a necessity to use
technologies, it would be better to actually have opportunities to do that…or
to learn to use the most recent ones…” (Woman, 17 years of pedagogical
experience; teaching Lithuanian language)
3

Dimensions of Lifelong learning (for teachers)
 Firstly, teachers have to learn to filter information in order to find the useful
and reliable materials, and secondly, they have to be responsible in creating and
uploading materials for other professionals’ use. That incorporates also the
moral and professional obligation to monitor students’ work to be uploaded.
Another dimension is very often an overlooked one, the one, that the project
LangOER (http://langoer.eun.org) focused on: and namely the fact that teachers
(also, the representatives of many other professions) are not fully aware of the
legal aspects of OER. That is, teachers have to be informed about the procedures
to upload and to download materials with respect to legal framework on
authorship. This dimension is often overlooked, and however, it is an important
aspect for making an OER practice a reliable one.
4

A whole set of national and international legal
documents provide legal framework in the field:
5
The Copyright and Related Rights Strategy, Official Gazette . 2000 , no. 84-2552
Berne Convention for the protection of literary and artistic works, 1886
(http://www3.lrs.lt/pls/inter3/dokpaieska.showdoc_l?p_id=19846&p_query=&p_tr2=)
International Convention for the Protection of Performers, Producers of Phonograms and Broadcasting
Organisations, Rome, (http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0013/001307/130729mb.pdf)
Convention for the Protection of Producers of Phonograms against Unauthorised Duplication of their
Phonograms, Geneve, (https://www.e-tar.lt/portal/lt/legalAct/TAR.8EE24C9C89A0)
Law on Copyright and Related Rights of the Republic of Lithuania, Official Gazette, 1999-06-09, Nr. 50-1598
The Code of Administrative Violations of Law of the Republic of Lithuania (https://www.e-
tar.lt/portal/lt/legalAct/TAR.FC2B71C84492)
The Law on revising and amending of the Criminal Codel of the Republic of Lithuania, Official Gazette,
2009-07-23, Nr. 87-3663
Constitution of the Republic of Lithuania
The Ruling of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Lithuania on the compliance of Paragraph 1 of
Article 21410 of the Code of Administrative Violations of Law of the Republic of Lithuania with the
Constitution of the Republic of Lithuania, 5 July 2000
Convention Establishing the World Intellectual Property Organization Stokholm 1967, (https://www.e-
tar.lt/portal/lt/legalAct/ae1a1c40c03311e5a6588fb85a3cc84b)

In general, author’s economic writes are ensured, because
author regularly has exclusive rights for:
 reproduction of a work in any form or by any means;
 2. publication of a work;
 3. translation of a work;
 4. adaptation, arrangement, dramatization or other transformation of a work;
 5. distribution of the original or copies of a work to the public by sale, rental,
lending, or by any other transfer of ownership or possession;
 6. importation of the copies of a work;
 7. public display of the original or copies of a work;
 8. public performance of a work in any form or by any means;
 9. broadcasting of a work;
 10. retransmission of a work;
 11. communication to the public of a work.
6

To sum up:
 The in-depth analysis of the legal basis for using and labelling of the products
designated as OER are in most cases national-legal framework based, though
certain international agreements and principles are quite clear.
 For our purposes, two main issues should be emphasized.
 Firstly, the legal basis thought quite strict in some cases, for the purposes of
teaching and learning, however, has a level of certain latitude and provides for
freedom of action for teachers and especially learners.
 Secondly, the teachers may not be informed about certain boundaries even in
the context of relatively not strict legal limitations for using products if they are
designated to be used as OER. Therefore further on, the results of pilot study are
presented, with the following two issues at focus.
7

Methodology of the empiric study.
 In order to investigate situation further, especially, with the focus on how teachers evaluate their
own competence and their own readiness to use educational resources, and, most importantly, are
they aware of the related legal considerations.
 The study was designed as a quasi-action research. Firstly, 26 teachers in Lithuania were invited to
join the series of seminars (in Spring 2015), financed by the LangOER project (2013 – 4107 / 001 -
001); (No. 543239-LLP1-1-2013-LV-KA2-KA2NW). Teachers all over Lithuania, but primarily from
Kaunas (300 thous. inhabitants) were invited to the series of 3 seminars. The questionnaire data
presented here is from the initial seminar with teachers: all 26 participants were asked to fill in the
questionnaire and ask 3 more colleagues back in their schools to do the same. The convenience
sampling, therefore, was used, the sampling which generated 72 responses. Later, after the three
seminars ((20 contact hours totally), and in between-blended learning activities), another
questionnaire was used to monitor, whether changes were achieved and of what nature. The data
for the second wave of questionnaires is still being processed, and will be presented on other
occasions.
 For the first wave, as it was mentioned, the convenience sampling resulted in 72 responses; both
closes and open type questions were used. The multiple choice answers (respondents were asked to
choose three answers that reflect their opinion best), Likert scale and nominal scale were used. In
some cases the percentage used for presentation of data in the paper reflect the proportion of
respondents (N=72 (100%)), in some other cases (that will be indicated separately), the percentage
reflects the total number of responses (therefore the N may be 208 (100%) or another number; that
will be indicated next to each Figure).
8

Respondents
9
11.1 11.1
77.8
elementary
school
junior high
high school
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18
Elementary school classes
Russian language
English language
Lithuanian language
Visual arts
Mathematics
Geography
Physics
Chemistry
Biology
Did not indicate
11
11
17
11
6
11
3
3
3
11
14

Lithuanian teachers about the OER in their
professional life.
10
0
11.1
36.1 36.1
11.1
2.8
0.00
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
100% 80-99% 60-79% 40-59% 20-39% 10-19% 0-10%
Respondents (N=72 of respondents, which represents 100%) on the
proportion, regarding to how much of materials are OER or OER
based in their classes

The teachers on the usefulness of employing OER in classes (N (total number of
choices=172, which makes up 100%). Respondents were allowed to choose 2 out of
presented 4 choices)
11
34.88
27.91 27.91
4.65 4.65 2.33
0.00
5.00
10.00
15.00
20.00
25.00
30.00
35.00
40.00
Makes a class more interesting Makes students more active Is suitable for independent studies incorporates visual signal, therefore is
benefitial for memory
enables the teaching process reflect
realities of studnets' life
makes teaching/learning diverse

The teachers on specific purpose of OER (N (total number of
choices=208, which makes up 100%). Respondents were allowed
to choose 2 out of presented 5 choices)
12
0.0 5.0 10.0 15.0 20.0 25.0 30.0 35.0
What is the specific pedagogical purpose of internet
sources in your classes
Plan of classe, other materials that I may directly use
in my class
Visual aids, illustrations, that I may use in my class
When I find something useful but not entirely
fitting, I make adjustments
I develop digital teaching/learning materials myslef

Respondents (N=72 of respondents, which represents
100%) about whether they are aware of the existence of
licencing procedure and whether they use it.
13
74
56
26
44
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
Do you know that the usage of internte sources (OER) is licenced? Do you follow the licencing procedure?
YES
NO

Respondents (N=72 of respondents, which represents
100%) on hoe they interpret themselves in relation to
digital space.
14
0.0 20.0 40.0 60.0 80.0 100.0 120.0
I think that OER is very useful for teaching
I know the concept of OER and its contents
I am sufficiently competent in order to use OER in my
teaching
I am competent in cooperating in digital space
I share the materials with my colleagues
I think that OER is very useful for
teaching
I know the concept of OER and its
contents
I am sufficiently competent in
order to use OER in my teaching
I am competent in cooperating in
digital space
I share the materials with my
colleagues
Do not know 0.0 5.6 11.1 16.7 0.0
Do not agree 0.0 33.3 16.7 22.2 16.7
Agree 100.0 30.6 77.8 55.6 77.8

Conclusions
 The analysis of Lithuanian legal basis on the usage of digital products as OER
enables the following conclusions. Firstly, the legal basis thought quite strict
in some cases, for the purposes of teaching and learning, however, has a
level of certain latitude and provides for freedom of action for teachers
and especially learners. Secondly, the teachers may not be informed about
certain boundaries even in the context of relatively not strict legal limitations for
using products if they are designated to be used as OER.
 As an empiric data of a pilot study, which main limitation is the convenience
sampling seems to indicate, Lithuanian teachers need educational support in
both the dimensions, presented in a theoretical discourse.
 Firstly, teachers acknowledge the necessity to use OER as a contemporary source
of teaching materials. They think OER to have a motivating role for teaching; also,
teachers believe that using OER helps to relate teaching materials better to
everyday life of students.
15

Conclusions
 As teachers teaching various subjects in a rare – Lithuanian language- participated in the
survey, it is logical to find them using OER as mainly readymade recipes and for
visualisation. There are not that many OER examples – textual resources - because of
Lithuania being such a small country (therefore its pedagogical community is small too).
The reliance on sources in other languages to some extent limits OER to a visual aid.
 Another dimension emphasised in theoretical discourse was the fact that teachers may be
in need of educational support to become better acquainted with the legal considerations
of both using and producing OER. As it was emphasised, the pilot empiric survey
substantiated the hypothesis, with an even more disconcerting results. Namely, it seems
even if teachers are aware of the procedure itself, they do not use it. And, while the
explanation may be the lack of time and energy for teachers to follow the procedure rather
than conscious decision to ignore this procedure, nevertheless, such path indicates certain
legal nihilism. As the society expects teachers to act as role models for students, in order to
contribute to the development of a democratic, law-based society, this dimension deserves
further attention, especially, as digital spaces become an overarching reality of a
contemporary life.
16

Thank you for the attention
Team of the project “Enhancing Teaching and Learning of Less used Languages
trough OER/OEP“ (No. 543239-LLP-1-2013-1-LV-KA2NW) at the Faculty of Public
Security at Mykolas Romeris University, Kaunas, Lithuania
17