In 2012, UNESCO defined Open Educational Resources (OER) to be, “teaching, learning and research materials in any medium, digital or otherwise, that reside in the public domain or have been released under an open license that permits no-cost access, use, adaptation and redistribution by others with no or limited restrictions.” OER have the potential to transform two intersecting areas of higher education: cost and pedagogy. The average student in the U.S. spends over $1,000 on textbooks every year, which can lead students not to take a course or, even worse, to drop or fail a course. Reducing or eliminating the cost of textbooks and other learning materials increases access to higher education. In addition to cost, the 5 Rs of OER provide pedagogical flexibility for librarians and faculty when creating or adapting learning materials: retain, reuse, revise, remix, and redistribute. Critically important for art history, OER can be revised and remixed to challenge dominant narratives by being more inclusive of women, people of color, and underrepresented communities. Moreover, a growing body of literature suggests that OER are perceived the same or favorably by students and lead to similar or improved student outcomes.
A collaboration with CAA’s Education Committee, this interactive session will include discussions of OER efficacy and perceptions across higher education and how OER are being promoted and implemented in art libraries. Following the panel, attendees will have the opportunity to explore OER implementation at activity stations tailored to a broad spectrum of experiences—bring your own device. From advocacy and policy creation to finding quality open teaching materials and creating openly licensed lesson plans, attendees will be encouraged to choose an activity station that speaks to their individual and institutional interests.
Participants can share any resources they discover or create during the activity in the following Google Doc:
https://goo.gl/AV16xJLearning Objective- Attendees will gain a clearer understanding of open educational resources' relationship to cost and pedagogy in higher education
