Institute for the Study of Knowledge Management in Education

The Institute for the Study of Knowledge Management in Education, commonly known as ISKME, is a California-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization established in 2002 by education scholar Lisa Petrides. Its work centers on making learning and knowledge sharing more participatory, equitable, and open. Rather than operating as a conventional consumer brand, ISKME functions as a research, service, convening, and platform organization serving educators, schools, colleges, universities, libraries, policymakers, foundations, and education networks. ISKME began with research into how educational institutions and philanthropic organizations collect, interpret, and share information. Its early work examined the ability of college faculty and administrators to use educational data for decision-making and explored knowledge-management practices among grantmakers. In 2002, the organization conducted a study for education foundations, and in 2003 it published a monograph addressing knowledge management in education. These activities established the institutional and research foundation for its later emphasis on open educational resources and open educational practice. With support from the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, ISKME expanded in 2004 into research and training related to open educational resources, or OER. It worked with organizations and initiatives including the Monterey Institute of Technology, Connexions, Teachers Domain, Free High School Science Texts, Siyavula in South Africa, and Training Commons in India. Subsequent partnerships involved schools of education, principal-training programs, and organizations such as the San Francisco School Alliance and the University of California's Principal Leadership Institute. ISKME's best-known offering is OER Commons, which it launched in 2007. OER Commons is a public digital library and collaboration platform for openly licensed teaching and learning materials. It supports discovery, curation, adaptation, sharing, and professional learning around OER. Over time, the platform developed customizable hubs and microsites for states, institutions, agencies, and other communities. ISKME also managed or supported specialized resource environments, including work associated with the National Science Digital Library. The organization combines platform development with field-building. Its activities include open education research, leadership development, library and information science, innovation and design, professional learning, and support for institutions adopting open practices. ISKME has participated in international and national policy networks, including work connected with UNESCO's OER agenda, and has supported open education initiatives in K-12 and higher education. ISKME has also created convening and innovation programs. Its Big Ideas Fest, launched in 2009, brought together education, technology, design, and media participants to explore new approaches to learning. The organization later developed Big Ideas in Beta, an education-innovation incubation program supported in part by philanthropic funding. In 2018, ISKME was selected to work with the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Educational Technology on the #GoOpen initiative. After federal leadership of that initiative was sunsetted, ISKME continued to support national engagement in K-12 open education. The organization has received recognition for its open education work. OER Commons was named an Education Laureate by the San Jose Tech Museum of Innovation in 2007 and was recognized by the American Association of School Librarians in 2017 as one of the nation's best websites for teaching and learning. ISKME was also a finalist for the Qatar Foundation's WISE Awards in 2010 and received an Award for Bodies which Influence Policy from the Open Educational Quality Initiative in 2011. Its present identity is that of an independent, mission-driven nonprofit supporting open educational infrastructure, collaboration, research, and implementation.

The Institute for the Study of Knowledge Management in Education was founded in 2002 in California by Lisa Petrides, an education researcher and former professor at Teachers College, Columbia University. The organization's starting point was the question of how schools, colleges, foundations, and other education institutions could use information more effectively and share knowledge across organizational boundaries. Petrides organized a knowledge-management summit involving leaders from K-12 education, higher education, and business, and ISKME conducted early research for education grantmakers on the exchange of data and information among foundations. In 2003, ISKME published work defining the emerging field of knowledge management in education. Its initial program therefore focused on research, institutional learning, data-informed decision-making, and the practical systems needed to circulate information. From 2004 onward, financial support from the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation helped the organization broaden its activity into open educational resources. ISKME developed research and training programs with a range of open-content and education organizations, including the Monterey Institute of Technology, Connexions, Teachers Domain, Free High School Science Texts, Siyavula, and Training Commons. During the middle of the 2000s, ISKME formed partnerships with schools of education and leadership-training programs. Work with the San Francisco School Alliance and the University of California's Principal Leadership Institute connected knowledge-sharing research with the professional development of educators and school leaders. This period also established the organization's recurring model: combine research with training, partnerships, digital tools, and practical implementation support. A major turning point came in 2007 with the launch of OER Commons. The service was designed as an open digital library in which educators could find, organize, evaluate, adapt, and share openly licensed teaching materials. It became the organization's most visible public-facing platform. In the same year, Petrides joined a group of international open-education leaders at the Cape Town meeting that produced the Cape Town Open Education Declaration, helping place ISKME within the wider movement for open access and open educational resources. ISKME expanded its field-building work in 2009 by launching Big Ideas Fest in Half Moon Bay. The event brought together educators, designers, technologists, researchers, and other participants to examine new approaches to learning. ISKME later developed Big Ideas in Beta as an innovation-incubation program. Media and education organizations, including KQED and Roadtrip Nation, were identified as co-sponsors of Big Ideas Fest. In 2010 and 2011, ISKME's open education work received external recognition. Its OER Commons teacher professional development initiative became a finalist for the Qatar Foundation's WISE Awards, while the Open Educational Quality Initiative gave ISKME an award recognizing bodies that influence policy. The organization also announced a matching grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to support Big Ideas in Beta. By 2014, OER Commons had been developed and presented as a curated public digital library rather than merely a repository. ISKME also began creating hubs, or customizable branded resource centers, and developed specialized microsites, including work related to the National Science Digital Library. These tools allowed states, institutions, agencies, and professional communities to organize OER around particular curricula, subjects, or policy goals. ISKME's partnerships broadened across K-12, higher education, international development, and public policy. The organization supported the 2013 Open Book Project in the Middle East in connection with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Undersecretary of Education Martha Kanter. It also worked with OpenStax, the NAACP, ALECSO, UNESCO, and the American Association of Colleges and Universities. In 2018, the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Educational Technology selected ISKME to partner on #GoOpen, a national effort encouraging K-12 systems to use open educational resources. After federal leadership of the initiative ended, ISKME continued to foster engagement in the field. The organization's international policy role continued through its relationship with UNESCO's OER work. ISKME supported activity associated with the UNESCO Recommendation on Open Educational Resources adopted in 2019. By the period covered by the available references, ISKME's work was organized around five broad areas: open education research, field-building and leadership development, platforms and tools, library and information sciences, and an innovation and design lab. Its identity remains that of an independent nonprofit supporting open knowledge infrastructure and educational collaboration rather than a conventional commercial brand.

• 2019

  Support for UNESCO OER policy

  [1]Institute for the Study of Knowledge Management in Educationen.wikipedia.org

  ISKME supports work associated with UNESCO's adoption of its Recommendation on Open Educational Resources.

• 2018

  Partnership on #GoOpen

  [1]Institute for the Study of Knowledge Management in Educationen.wikipedia.org

  ISKME partners with the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Educational Technology on the #GoOpen initiative.

• 2014

  OER Commons develops into a curated library

  [1]Institute for the Study of Knowledge Management in Educationen.wikipedia.org

  The platform is repositioned as a curated public digital library and is extended through hubs and microsites.

• 2009

  Big Ideas Fest begins

  [1]Institute for the Study of Knowledge Management in Educationen.wikipedia.org

  ISKME hosts the first Big Ideas Fest, an event devoted to innovation in education.

• 2007

  OER Commons launches

  [1]Institute for the Study of Knowledge Management in Educationen.wikipedia.org

  ISKME launches its public digital library and collaboration platform for open educational resources.

• 2004

  Expansion into open educational resources

  [1]Institute for the Study of Knowledge Management in Educationen.wikipedia.org

  With Hewlett Foundation support, ISKME expands into OER research and training and develops partnerships with open-content initiatives.

• 2003

  Publication on knowledge management in education

  [1]Institute for the Study of Knowledge Management in Educationen.wikipedia.org

  ISKME publishes a monograph examining the emerging field of knowledge management in education.

• 2002

  ISKME is founded

  [1]Institute for the Study of Knowledge Management in Educationen.wikipedia.org

  Lisa Petrides establishes ISKME as a California nonprofit focused initially on knowledge management, educational data, and information sharing.

A mission-driven nonprofit that combines open education research, digital infrastructure, educator capacity building, and policy-oriented field development. ISKME positions its work around equitable access to knowledge, collaboration, reuse of openly licensed resources, and practical support for education systems.

• Open educational resource platform · 2007

  OER Commons

  OER Commons is ISKME's principal digital platform and public library for open educational resources. It enables educators and institutions to discover, organize, evaluate, adapt, and share openly licensed materials. The platform supports resource collections, collaboration, professional learning, and institution- or subject-specific organization through hubs. Its development made ISKME a prominent infrastructure and service provider in the open education movement.

• Customizable education resource centers

  OER Commons Hubs

  OER Commons Hubs are customizable resource centers built around particular organizations, states, subjects, initiatives, or communities. They allow participating entities to curate and present open educational materials in a branded or locally organized environment while remaining connected to the wider OER Commons ecosystem.

• Education innovation event · 2009

  Big Ideas Fest

  Big Ideas Fest is an ISKME convening program focused on education innovation. It brings together educators, researchers, designers, technologists, media participants, and other stakeholders to explore new approaches to teaching, learning, and institutional change. The inaugural event was held in Half Moon Bay in 2009.

• Education innovation incubation · 2011

  Big Ideas in Beta

  Big Ideas in Beta was an ISKME program intended to incubate and support experimentation in education. Its development was associated with a matching grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation announced in 2011.

• 2018#GoOpen

  United States

  ISKME partnered with the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Educational Technology to support national K-12 engagement with open educational resources.

  Outcome. After federal leadership of #GoOpen was sunsetted, ISKME continued to foster national engagement in K-12 open education.

  Source
• 2013Open Book Project in the Middle East

  Middle East

  ISKME supported the launch of the Open Book Project in partnership with U.S. government education and diplomatic leaders, including Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Undersecretary of Education Martha Kanter.

  Outcome. The project contributed to regional open education partnership-building; the available reference does not specify quantitative outcomes.

  Source

• 2014

  Repositioning OER Commons as a curated public libraryStrategy

  Background

  As the volume and diversity of open educational materials grew, ISKME expanded the platform's organizational and curation functions.

  Action taken

  ISKME developed OER Commons as a curated public digital library and added customizable hubs and specialized microsites.

  Aftermath

  The platform became more adaptable to the needs of states, institutions, agencies, and subject-specific communities.

  Source

• 2007

  Launch of OER CommonsProduct launch

  Background

  ISKME's earlier research and training work had expanded from knowledge management into open educational resources.

  Action taken

  The organization created a public digital library and collaboration platform for openly licensed teaching and learning materials.

  Aftermath

  OER Commons became ISKME's principal public-facing platform and the foundation for later hubs, microsites, and institutional services.

  Source

1. 1Institute for the Study of Knowledge Management in Educationen.wikipedia.org
2. 2ISKME official websiteiskme.org