Personally, I don’t mind putting documents or how-tos out there, because I tend to be more technologically literate that most in my peer groups. I wouldn’t have learned much of what I have, if it weren’t for the kindness of my peers, and tutorials put out there by others. There really is a sense of giving back, in those situations.
Professionally, it is a different story. In the public education world, nothing is original. We have all “borrowed” parts or entire lessons from others. There is a strong sense of not reinventing the wheel. Most teachers are very generous souls (they certainly aren’t in it for the money) and helpful by nature. However, if I were in a higher institution of learning, the pressure to publish might color my willingness to share so readily. I would be very hesitant to put anything out there that could be “scooped” by another researcher, as it seems there is so much riding on all papers being unique. There are situations where you can gain from making your ideas public, such as repositories like Merlot and The Orange Grove. Publishing things there can add to your reputation, especially when the peer reviews are favorable and you are a regular contributor of highly rated material.
As a former staff trainer, I must confess to being somewhat chafed by putting long hours into course on the BlackBoard site for Innovative Learning, only to have them claimed by the school system as their property to copy and distribute, oftentimes with no credit to the author! All the rules are different in public education, it seems…
Great point about improving your professional reputation by sharing ideas and research. The Orange Grove, digitial repository of learning objects, is an excellent example.
ReplyDeleteRegina,
ReplyDeleteI produce courseware for the government. I run into the same thing. I may spend months designing and developing a product I am very proud of, but once it's accepted by the government I can no longer claim any ownership of the ideas behind it.