There are a number of reasons:
- Philanthropic: Sharing and providing education to people all over the world, with special attention to those in developing countries or without access to high-quality local education.
- Strategic: Adapting educational practices to the changing world culture may increase viability of educational institutions.
- Pedagogic: The act of sharing may draw attention to quality; the act of adapting or remixing may increase quality; the use of new technologies may enhance educational engagement amongst learners.
- Economic: Cost-savings to the institution by digitally archiving their own materials, and then sharing and reusing within the institution and amongst peers.
(Adapted from: http://mfeldstein.com/itoe-motivations-for-open-education/)