Open Education 101
Getting Started with OER
Presenter: Cheryl Cuillier
Are you new to open educational resources and want to learn more? This session will cover the basics of OER and building an OER program. Whether you’re an instructor, librarian, administrator, instructional designer, or student advocate, you’ll leave this session with a wealth of resources to help you kick-start an OER initiative or your adoption, adaptation, or creation of OER.
Learning Outcomes:
– How OER differ from free resources
– Where to find open textbooks and ancillary materials
– What resources are available for customizing OER
– How to incorporate open pedagogy into a course
– How to collaborate with campus partners and build an OER program
– How to raise awareness of OER
– How to connect with other OER advocates
Privacy and Surveillance in Digital Courseware
Presenters: Brandon Butler, Cecelia Parks, Judith Thomas
The current generation of digital courseware, particularly that marketed under the term “inclusive access,” poses a threat to the future of open education. Purporting to address the affordability crisis in academic courseware, publishers have devised an automatic billing model that depends on group-based subscriptions in order to provide to students discounted materials, and, not incidentally, gather a vast amount of student data. The collected data are put to various uses, including product development and learning analytics, the results of which are sometimes made available to the students’ home institutions – most often to the faculty in specific courses – as information about the students’ use of the materials.
This panel will focus on the surveillance and privacy issues inherent in the use of inclusive access products. Students in classes for which the courseware is required are a captive market: if they want to succeed in class, they have no option but to agree to privacy terms that allow for the collection, analysis, and use of their data. Students lose control of their personal identity, with no say in how much to reveal and how much to conceal about themselves and their learning behaviors.
An additional concern relates to diversity and equity. A growing body of evidence reveals the potential danger inherent in big data analysis of exacerbating inequality; for instance, those social groups with the greatest representation in data sets will often see the greatest benefit from data-driven decision-making.
This panel will explore the practical, ethical, and legal dimensions of this issue, helping participants understand the privacy implications of using inclusive access courseware and its importance in the context of open education. Panelists will discuss how the data is gathered and used; what privacy agreements say and don’t say about privacy protection; what role FERPA plays in protecting privacy; how US privacy law enables surveillance-based business models. We hope to generate discussion among the participants on how best to generate and sustain conversations on college campuses about the ethical implications of adopting data-collecting courseware.
Learning Outcomes:
- Understand the implications for student privacy in the use of digital courseware, especially inclusive access products.
- Understand the strengths and limitations of FERPA in protecting privacy.
- Understand surveillance within the context of US privacy law
- Learn how to read and interpret privacy statements that accompany digital courseware.
- Develop strategies for investigating and communicating courseware-related privacy issues at your own institution.
Overcoming Barriers to Sustainable Open Education Initiatives: Labor and Ethical Considerations
Encouraging and supporting the adoption and creation of open educational resources demands significant academic labor; however, few studies provide explicit detail about the personnel and costs underlying open education initiatives. This presents a problem for institutions seeking to implement or improve their own initiatives.
The lack of transparency about labor also obscures ethical concerns about the agency of the librarians, faculty, students, instructional designers, and other potential stakeholders involved, each of whom occupy varying positions of power and privilege within the academic apparatus.
This presentation helps to address that gap through a case study of how Ohio University Libraries have attempted to make its open education initiatives more sustainable and impactful by transitioning from workshops and other labor-intensive activities to collaborations with faculty and students focused on OER creation in which librarians have taken on more of a project management role.
We will describe those initiatives and the projects they have yielded, including a student-authored open Hispanic linguistics textbook, student-created test banks to support OER materials for a high-enrollment art history course, and several additional projects in which students have been hired to assist faculty with developing open content. We will discuss the challenges encountered along the way and how our trajectory has helped us to overcome some of those barriers. We will frame our discussion within the context of labor and the ethical implications for open educational practices and open pedagogy.
Learning Outcomes:
- Participants will understand possibilities for creating open education initiatives that are more sustainable and focus more on OER creation and open pedagogy via collaboration between librarians, faculty, and students.
- Participants will be able to critically analyze the labor implications for their own open education initiatives in order to foster more equitable and inclusive collaborations in support of open education.
Faculty Perceptions of Open Pedagogy: Examining Diversity, Inclusion, and Accessibility
Presenters: John Hilton III, Bryson Hilton, Cecil Short
With the increasing development and adoption of Open Educational Resources, many researchers and practitioners are interested in carefully examining pedagogies connected with their use. This presentation presents research findings and explores the following questions — (1) how do faculty members define and implement open pedagogy?, (2) what are faculty members experiences with open pedagogy in regard to course implementation and student learning outcomes compared to traditional practices?, (3) what are the perceived affordances and constraints of using open pedagogy in higher education?, and (4) do faculty members feel as though the benefits of open pedagogy outweigh the potential costs?
Learning Outcomes:
Discover the perceptions of instructors who implemented various approaches to open pedagogy in post-secondary institutions in the eastern United States. Instructor perceptions provide evidence of open pedagogy’s effectiveness, including for diversity, inclusion, and accessibility in the classroom.
OER is Served: Framing OER as a Service to Stakeholders
Presenters: Sara Tabaei and Georgia Westbrook
This lightning talk will share how we see OER support as a service provided in tandem with instructional design, scholarly publishing, teaching, and copyright consultations. We will provide a case study for each of these areas and provide tips for those who want to take this approach in their own institutions. We have found that this approach was successful in particular because our initiative was bootstrapped and built with the elbow grease of librarians, rather than with institutional motivation and monetary support.
Framing OER as a service begs the question: service to whom? We find that, for us, OER work is a service to students, a service to faculty, and a service to the college as a whole. Serving students means decreasing the amount of money they need to spend on textbooks and course materials. Serving faculty means providing instructional support and fostering their academic freedom. And service to the college means supporting enrollment efforts which emphasize the low cost of attendance.
Viewers will find ideas for their OER programs at colleges big and small, public and private.
Viewers will:
– Learn how we positioned OER work as a library service and the benefits that may provide
– Hear a case study of OER work at a private college with several campuses
– Begin to determine whether this approach might be a good fit for their institution
– Understand how OER work fits into other library services
Self-Determination Theory as a Framework for Structuring OER-enabled Pedagogy
Presenters: Eric Werth, Katherine Williams
Open Pedagogy has been described as a method by which open educators may make significant and meaningful changes to the pedagogical approach utilized in their classes. Open Pedagogy is a method where one relinquishes unilateral control of the learning environment and eschews a banking model of education in favor of one that is empowering, gives voice to students, and encourages class participants to join in the co-creation instead of passive consumption of knowledge.
Suffering from a plethora of multifaceted and sometimes divergent definitions, OER-enabled Pedagogy has been proposed as a more concrete term better suited to effective communication and research. OER-enabled Pedagogy is defined by four criteria that must be met: 1- Students create a new artifact; 2- The artifact supports learning of that beyond the creator, 3- Students may share their work publicly, and 4- Students may openly license their artifacts.
This session reports on research conducted with first-year college students who participated in a project based on OER-enabled pedagogy. Using a qualitative design, students were asked questions related to elements of the project and what criteria they found motivating. Interviews were coded using the types of internal and external regulation found in Ryan and Deci’s work on Self-Determination Theory. We will discuss findings of this research as well as what they suggest about how we can make open pedagogy most beneficial for students. Much research has been done on the benefits experienced by those who are autonomously versus externally controlled. Our suggestions for those who are utilizing open pedagogy or OER-enabled pedagogy will be related to how even this approach can enhance or reduce student autonomous regulation.
Learning Outcomes:
1. Describe the tenets of Self-Determination Theory and how these relate to open pedagogy and OER-enabled Pedagogy.
2. Review data on motivational elements of students who have completed a project based on OER-enabled Pedagogy.
3. Reflect on how the structure of OER-enabled Pedagogy may impact student development of internally regulated motivation and the benefits this represents.
Open Pedagogy for Hyflex or Online Learning: Examples from HiEd
Whether on campus or online, students can benefit from open education … but only if we design our courses and assignments appropriately to our varied student audiences and their learning conditions. In the current pandemic situation, students’ learning environments may alter throughout the semester or academic year. Principles of open pedagogy and online learning can help us better prepare for the flexibility required in uncertain times.
We need to design participatory models and student engagement activities that facilitate student agency and accessible learning in a multitude of circumstances. This presentation offers some examples from undergraduate, in-class/hybrid courses as well as graduate, asynchronous online courses and adaptations for the hyflex model.
The needs of our different learners also mean that we cannot just establish one curriculum design and use that for all of our open courses. Rather, we should be customizing the curriculum and learning activities based on the pedagogical principles appropriate to the level and expectations of learners, the modality(ies) of the learning experience, and our own fundamental teaching beliefs.
This presentation concludes with a model of one approach for determining appropriate pedagogical theory, principles, and best practices for any given combination of these factors (learners, modalities, teaching philosophies). By demonstration, the particular set of factors underlying the earlier examples of participation/engagement are used to show alignment, but this model can be used to tweak or overhaul curricula based on any chosen set of factors.
Whatever your philosophy of teaching, you have a developed (or developing) teaching identity, and your beliefs/identity can be integrated into an accessible and open approach to teaching and learning.
Learning Outcomes:
- Explore different options to increase flexibility for participation/engagement when students’ learning conditions change.
- Consider small or large changes to integrate open pedagogy and more accessible learning in your next class.
- Discuss a planning technique to help align curriculum design and learning activities with pedagogical principles.
- Imagine ways to implement open pedagogy in an approach consistent with your own teaching philosophy/identity.
Journeys through OER: Past, Present, and Future Adventures and Understandings
Presenters: Feng-Ru Sheu, Judy Orton Grissett
The presentation will be a 10-minute video with slides, images, and narrative/audio. In our video, we will explore our own journeys as users and developers of open educational resources. Examples of past and potential future renewable assignments and tools used for implementation will be included.
We will begin our session with a look of where we began: two members of the original OpenEd Fellows cohort (2015-16) who had limited experience with OER but were excited about learning more and meeting others who had a similar passion. Along the way, we were exposed to the issues, problems, and the status of open education and started thinking as an instructional designer and instructor, what can we do? Since meeting at OpenEd, we have collaborated on multiple conference presentations, open pedagogy projects, and a manuscript (published in 2019).
Our interest started with a simple change for easing financial hardship due to the textbook cost issue—adopt an open textbook. Over time, we moved to implementing open pedagogy by changing disposable assignments to renewable/non-disposable assignments. Each semester we tried to improve the experiences for both teaching and learning. Along the way, we did a few pieces of research that helped us have a better understanding of students’ experience and preferences regarding the textbook selection and non-disposable assignments. What was not reported in our findings about textbook selection was our own growth as an instructor and instructional designer. In our session, we will focus on the energy it took to create, implement, assess, and redesign the assignments we created, the collaboration needed between the two of us to make this work, and suggestions and recommendations based on what worked and what didn’t.
Our goal is to help others by being transparent with our own journeys. Our story is particularly relevant to this year’s conference theme, as we see our collaboration as an intersection between multiple dimensions of ourselves: we are in two different roles (instructor and instructional designer) at very different institutions half-way across the United States.
We will discuss our past collaborations–including celebrations and challenges–and how we will move forward in a time of increased emphasis on remote/online learning. This evolution will be crucial both as individuals and as a field, as we continue to move forward with rapid pedagogical shifts and changes during an unprecedented time.
Learning Outcomes: After this session, attendees will have a better grasp of and appreciation for the effects one’s journey has on developing and using open materials and assignments. Understanding our journeys are key to understanding our pasts—and futures—as champions and users of OER. By opening up and examining our experiences of growth and setbacks thus far, we are more self-aware and can imagine how we might evolve as individuals and a community in the open education field.
The Beginner’s Guide to a College-wide OER Implementation
Presenters: Deborah Bowles and Michael Smith
Representatives from Prince George’s Community College will present to you their beginner’s guide to an OER implementation at the organizational level. In this presentation, you will learn about the structure of a sustainable OER initiative, the necessary stakeholders and the project plan that was used to implement OERs at Prince George’s Community College. The presenters will discuss how the OER courses were chosen and how faculty were encouraged to participate. They will also talk about the challenges and lessons learned from their first year implementation. At the end of the presentation, you will walk away with a clear and duplicatable process for starting and sustaining a college-wide OER implementation.
Learning Outcomes:
Upon completion of the presentation, participants will learn the following:
– The structure and support needed for a college-wide OER implementation
– How to encourage faculty participation
– High impact areas to implement OER courses
– Necessary support for sustainability
– Outcomes and Results
– Lessons Learned
OER for Beginners in Texas and Beyond: Texas Learn OER
Presenters: Carrie Gits and Ursula Pike
Texas Learn OER is a free and openly licensed self-paced training for faculty, staff, and administrators developed by OER Librarian Carrie Gits in partnership with the Digital Higher Education Consortium of Texas (DigiTex). The 10 online modules include information on understanding OER; open licensing, including Creative Commons; finding and evaluating OER; accessibility; adapting, creating, and sharing OER; and Texas legislation related to OER. The modules are intended for individuals who are new to OER, but also by those who want a refresher course. This session will walk participants through the Texas Learn OER modules and provide guidance on remixing the training for your state. The training itself is an example of remixing an existing OER because Carrie Gits originally developed the training for her SPARC Open Education Leadership Fellows capstone project.
Learning Outcomes:
Using Texas Learn OER as a backdrop, attendees will be introduced to basic concepts of OER. Attendees will explore Texas Learn Modules and interact with content.
- Learn what open educational resources are
- Identify how to find and evaluate OER
- Discover how to adapt, create and share OER
- Learn how to remix Texas Learn OER for your state
Reimagining OER discovery: Mapping OER to transfer courses
Presenter: Sophie Rondeau
Identification and discovery of appropriate, high quality open educational resources (OER) is a significant challenge for faculty and often a barrier to adoption. In response, the VIVA OER Course Mapping Project Task Force is reimagining how faculty find OER appropriate for general education courses by developing a listing through VIVA Open, an OER Commons microsite, that aligns with Transfer Virginia courses. Transfer Virginia, led by the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia (SCHEV) and the Virginia Community College System (VCCS), is a collaboration between institutions of higher education, intended to reform the transfer experience by removing barriers to transfer from two-year to four-year institutions in a more affordable, efficient, and equitable manner.
Without a Virginia common course catalog, partnering with the Transfer Virginia initiative has afforded the Course Mapping Task Force access to course templates drafted by Virginia faculty that outline objectives, topics, and learning outcomes. Since VCCS courses are high enrollment, general education courses, the Task Force expects the mapped materials will also benefit lower-level courses at four-year public and private institutions in Virginia. Expansion of the Course Mapping Project to include general education courses at 4-year institutions will determine if this assumption is correct.
Faculty engagement and review of the selected OER are also essential in determining the success of the project. Thus, Virginia faculty are invited to “sprint” review the OER for quality of explanation of subject matter and comprehensiveness. The results are increased engagement with and among Virginia faculty, exposure to available OER in their discipline, a faculty reviewed seal of approval, and greater insight into their valuation of curated OER.
Learning Outcomes: Key takeaways include outlining the challenges and steps involved in implementing and coordinating the various elements of a large scale Course Mapping Project that can be adapted to other institutional or consortial situations. Participants will also learn about the value of engaging faculty in OER reviews that relate directly to the curriculum.
Design for Open: Strategies and Processes
Presenter: Geoff Cain
In this session, participants will learn about the different roles that instructional designers, faculty course developers, and other education professionals can play in the advocacy and promotion of OER and open eduction practices. Example course development templates that utilize OER will be reviewed. This session will also provide a definition of open education practices, what the advantages of these practices might be, and review strategies for including open education processes into the curriculum. Resources and lesson plans that utilize OEP will be shared and discussed.
Learning Outcomes:
Participants in this session will be able to:
• Identify the different roles that instructional designers and faculty course developers can play in the advocacy for OER and open practices,
• Understand how to connect OER to the learning design process using course design templates,
• Identify open strategies that can be applied to course development that promote student engagement and ownership of their learning.
Thinking about Adapting a Textbook? Tips We Learned Along the Way
Presenters: Robin Ewing and Cindy Gruwell
The cost of textbooks and higher education continues to rise. Students face no-win decisions between expensive textbooks and basic needs. In order to disrupt this situation, faculty and students are driving the development of open-access textbooks and instructional materials.
But where do you begin with creating an open textbook? As instructors of a Critical Thinking in Academic Research course, we wanted an open-access textbook and up-to-date ancillary materials that met the flexibility of the content covered in class. While we used a wide variety of web sites to support the course content, a single textbook that covered all aspects of the course eluded us. Open access information literacy content was not hard to find, however the critical thinking components were best handled by a commercial textbook.
We surveyed our students and listened to their requests for a low cost or free textbook. We decided it was time to take the leap and create something of our own. At that time we were using both an open-access textbook focused on information literacy and a commercial critical thinking textbook. Ultimately we decided not to reinvent the wheel, but to adapt the open access book and dig deep to find a comparable critical thinking open textbook with the content needed to balance the research information.
We will share how we got our project started. We’ll describe what we knew, what we didn’t, how we planned our project, and how to overcome hurdles that pop up along the way.
Learning Outcomes:
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Discuss the realistic picture and timetable for adapting textbooks
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Identify the practical steps for online textbook collaboration
You Don’t Have to Write the Textbook: Curating Your Content for Class
Presenter: Gina Loveless
Are you currently using a purchased textbook for a course you are teaching? Does every student have a copy? Does it include examples of different races, gender and living circumstances? Does it have examples of cultures different from your own? Creating an OER resource/textbook for student use can feel like a daunting task. Come and listen while we work to take the fear, anxiety, and uncertainty out of creating such a resource. Adding diversity in your content has many benefits. We aren’t re-writing the textbook, we are guiding student learning by compiling the best resources from open content. Gather a syllabus and a computer as we journey together to start the process.
Learning Outcomes:
Participants will identify 3-5 online resources to help them begin curating content for the creation of an OER playlist for a course in which they teach.
Participants will learn that creating an OER textbook does not have to be a daunting task and has many rewards for all involved.
Participants will experience a collaborative work environment that supports a range of ideas in curation of content.
How (and Why) to Create Your Own OER Podcast
At MIT OpenCourseWare, we’re passionate about sharing OER with a global audience. Our newest initiative, the Chalk Radio Podcast, is our latest creative effort to promote awareness of OER at scale and to amplify diverse experiences of creating and sharing OER. We completed our first season with 100K+ downloads on podcast platforms and 110K+ listens on YouTube, so we strongly believe podcasting can be a powerful tool for sharing OER more broadly.
In this session, facilitated by the host of Chalk Radio and MIT OpenCourseWare’s Media Production lead, we share what we’ve learned as newcomers to the podcasting space, provide guidance to other educators initiating or currently working on their own OER-focused podcasts, and get feedback and tips from more experienced participants.
Our session hones in on the five stages of getting a podcast off the ground: 1) defining your focus and audience; 2) making technical decisions about how to record (and how to reimagine these possibilities when recording remotely during Covid-19); 3) preparing interview protocols; 4) post-production editing and accessibility considerations; and 5) outreach and promotion. Through an asynchronous special epsiode of Chalk Radio made especially for our session attendees, we’ll briefly share practical tips in each of these areas and then make ourselves available via zoom to work with participants to apply the suggestions to their own projects. We will use participants’ ideas and experiences to enhance the production and promotion of Chalk Radio, and invite participants to share their own stories of making, using, and sharing OER on our podcast.
Learning Outcomes:
1) Define your OER podcast audience and focus; 2) Get recommendations for recording remotely during Covid-19; 3) Discuss how to develop effective interview protocols; 4) Learn about post-production storytelling strategies; 5) Discuss how to make your podcast more accessible to a diverse audience; 6) Get feedback on outreach strategies and gain access to promotional email templates; 7) Amplify your OER story on Chalk Radio, the MIT OpenCourseWare podcast
