3.5 Availability of Ancillary Materials Some instructors rely heavily on ancillary materials that come packaged with textbooks from traditional publishers. These may include test banks, presentation materials, and workbooks. It can be more difficult and time-consuming to work with an OER if ancillary materials are not available and need to be created from scratch. As more and more instructors adopt OERs, however, ancillary materials are becoming more common. Many instructors are willing to share materials they have created, thus furthering openness. 3.6 Sustainability Because many content creators are not paid for their work on OERs, the materials may not be kept up to date as consistently as traditional textbooks. If online works are not hosted by a reliable institution, they may not be available for long-term use. 4. How can the college support OER adoption and development? 4.1 Make OER use a strategic goal Because OERs can impact student enrollment, success (Hilton, 2016; Feldstein, et al, 2012), course completion (Colvard, Watons & Park, 2018) and retention (Achieving the Dream, 2018), it makes sense to consider adding a campus-wide strategic goal regarding use of OERs across campus. 4.2 Encourage communication about OERs Expressed institutional support for OERs is certainly a significant element in widespread adoption, but effective communication among faculty can also help raise awareness and enthusiasm. Presenting professional development opportunities focused on OERs and highlighting faculty who are working with OERs and open pedagogy can increase “buzz” about OERs. Creating an OER working group can also help formalize channels of communication for and about OERs on campus. 4.3 Financially support OER creation or adaptation Although OERs may be free or low-cost to students, production of Open Educational Resources is not free. Someone must do the labor to produce, review, adopt, or adapt open resources to be used in classrooms. The college can help support this labor by offering grants, stipends, and/or release time to faculty involved in OER initiatives. The INTRO Model for sustainability indicates that increased enrollment can help cover these costs (Wiley, Williams, DeMarte & Hilton, 2016). Grants from outside organizations are also available in some cases. 4.4 Promote student choice Some institutions indicate in their course catalog and/or schedule which classes offer the use of OER materials to reduce textbook costs. This can be a selling point to students. 5. How can I use OERs in my classroom? University of Arkansas Libraries (2018) identify three ways faculty can become involved with Open Educational Resources: they can adopt already created OERs, create their own OERs, or adapt existing OER materials to fit their course. In addition, instructors can take OERs one step further by engaging in open pedagogy.
Hagerstown Community College Open Educational Resources Guidebook
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