Open Ed Week 2021: Developing Living Content: The Perspective of OER Authors and Instructors
by UAA Textbook Affordability |
Open Ed Week 2021: OER - The Gift of Flexibility
Tuesday, March 2, 2021
Developing Living Content: The Perspective of OER Authors and Instructors
Open Educational Resources and other zero cost course materials have the potential to dramatically reduce access barriers for our students, but they also have a variety of benefits for the instructors that use and create them. Today, we’re highlighting the experience of two Textbook Affordability Fellows that have created their own course materials.
Sara Rufner
UAA Writing
One of the benefits of using OER is seemingly infinite flexibility with the curriculum. Last summer I created a textbook using the Pressbooks platform. Pressbooks is a simple online book publishing tool. It requires no coding or fancy computer skills. Since I hit “publish” on the Pressbook in August 2020, I’ve been able to make quick updates to the book as needed. Just this week I updated the APA Style Guide section with some new links. It took me less than 5 minutes to do so. Gone are the days of feeling guilty about using only half of an expensive textbook, or feeling weary of covering the same. material. every. semester. OER’s flexibility has made me a more nimble teacher, responsive to my students, my field of work, and the world in which we live.
Click here to learn more about Sara’s course transformation!
Terri Manthey
UAA Mathematics and Statistics
I have been using some open-educational resources for several years now. OER usage has allowed me to take my course farther into topics that I was ever able to before. It gave my students a way to learn online, step-by-step, interactively. With the various ways OER materials can be accessed for students, it has given them the flexibility to learn their way and it has provided me with the tools to help them succeed.
Click here to learn more about Terri’s course transformation!
Interested in joining 80+ UAA faculty who have adopted OER or other zero cost course materials? Do some initial searches or schedule a meeting with D’Arcy Hutchings to see what current OER and ZTC options exist for your courses.
Interested in making a difference but you’d rather not go it alone? The Textbook Affordability Fellows program has provided structured support and $2,500 compensation to 19 UAA faculty who have transitioned from commercial to ZTC/OER course materials over the past 2 years.
Learn more about UAA’s Textbook Affordability initiative.
Participating in the global Open Education Week is part of UAA's Textbook Affordability initiative to make college more affordable. This series will provide you with practical tips and inspiration for improving student success by reducing the cost of course materials and incorporating open educational practices.
Join us tomorrow for "Supporting Student Needs."
"Open Ed Week 2021: Developing Living Content: The Perspective of OER Authors and Instructors" is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.