%0	Conference Paper
%A	Kirschner, Paul A.
%A	Varvick, Peter
%A	van Dorp, Cornelis Adrianus
%A	Lane, Andy
%C	North Logan, UT, United States, Europe
%D	2006
%G	eng
%K	self-learners resources
%K	non-English OER
%K	national educational policy
%K	Lifelong Learning
%K	higher education
%K	distance education
%T	Open educational resources in Europe: A triptych of actions to support participation in higher education
%U	http://oro.open.ac.uk/17831/
%X	In contrast to the face-to-face learning of campus based universities and the focus on traditional students, distance teaching universities focus on a mix of distance learning, e-learning, open learning, virtual mobility, learning communities, and the integration of earning and learning. In doing so, they are taking a leading role in helping to increase and widen participation in lifelong open and flexible learning in higher education by non-traditional groups. This paper discusses three leading-edge European Open Educational Resource initiatives. The initiatives are special in nature and differ from the offers of traditional universities in the sense that they: consist of pedagogically-rich learning materials, specifically designed and developed for distance learning and intended for independent self-study; are compiled in the national languages, with the EADTU initiative being multilingual, reflecting the European dimension; and, support and are supported by the policies of the national governments and the European Commission.