OPEN EDUCATION: CONCEPTUAL SYNOPSIS AND DIMENSIONS/SCOPES TOWARDS EFFECTIVE DIGITAL CITIZENSHIP DEVELOPMENT

Abstract

Effective Digital Citizenship Development is a relatively distinct innovative citizenship insight in the current civic account. it evolves out of necessity to review further citizenship relevance in the globally connected information and communication technology to transform learners’ citizenship behaviours within the sociopolitical digital age. There is a need to have an update on learners’ citizenship outlook based on the open education concept. Open education is discussed from the term ‘open’ which is ubiquitous but specifically discussed in the educational context. Thus, extant advocacy on the ‘open education’ concept has diverse definitions which though related yet contested. As a multivalent and conflated concept, open education has diverse conceptual meanings, constituents/components and values/benefits in socio-civic education which is herein discussed. The conceptualizations have evolved ambiguity, restricting joint efforts, subsiding open innovation thwarting research efforts. Though, there are numerous open education constituents/components but restricted to open education practice, resources, content, and pedagogy to develop effective digital citizenship using diverse available literature for review. Also, identified open education constituents are discussed based on several conceptualizations via literature appraisal involving merging several kinds of literature. It boosts communication and offers an avenue for socio-civic stakeholders’ awareness of the concepts’ definitions and distinct traits as more functional resource tools in the socio-civic education curriculum implementation (teaching/learning) toward developing effective digital citizenship.