Description:
The use of OERs has been a growing trend, particularly for online programs. With the enormous rise of the cost of textbooks within the past 30 years due to a variety of factors, students and faculty alike have been in search of no-cost alternatives whose quality is as good or better than traditional publisher-based materials. In addition to saving cost, however, the use of OERs also helps faculty chunk their material (a pedagogical best practice) and create more tightly-focused courses. In this workshop, we’ll explore the rise of OERs, both as repositories of materials as well as the embodiment of a general movement to lower the cost of – and thus the barrier to – higher education. In addition, given that the adoption of any new teaching resource may feel daunting, we’ll provide concrete tips on how to locate and evaluate OERs, including utilizing OER repositories, exploring frameworks by which you can assess OERs, and identifying OER licensing. By the end of it, you should be able to:
Define OERs.
Explain some of the origins of OERs.
Identify a process to implement OERs in your online course(s).
Identify the benefits and challenges of implementing OERs in your online course(s).
Hosted By: WES Faculty Development Specialist Adam Shaw and SAU Director of CIDT & Online Learning Donnie Ingram.
