Permanent URI for this collection
Browse
Recent Submissions
Publication Public Records as Open Educational Resources(2024-04-04) Gil, Jodie; Wharton, Jonathan L.; Wilkinson, ElizabethThe Hilton C. Buley Library at Southern Connecticut State University is host to a collection of documents which includes materials from four former New Haven mayors, consisting of more than 188 cubic feet of material in the library’s Special Collections & Archives. An effort to digitize the documents has brought broader access to a majority of the materials from the 20-year John DeStefano mayoral tenure (1994-2013). The ease and depth of access to these documents sheds light on the inner workings of the city of New Haven, but also highlights the types of records that are currently available to the public through a simple Freedom of Information Request. These primary source documents include government reports, meeting minutes, speech drafts and internal communications at New Haven City Hall. They are valuable tools for students as they learn about public policy, reporting on municipalities, and several other issues, such as school reform and economic development, that have been detailed in depth through the communications, reports and city documents. This session, geared toward beginners, will provide context about the collection and instructions on how to access it, as well as assignment ideas for using public records in class, and resources to support filing your own Freedom of Information requests for records to use in the classroom.Publication Leveraging Openness: Exploring OER Integration for Enhanced Blended Learning Design at the University of Namibia(2024-04-04) Ferreira-Meyers, Karen Aline FrançoiseParticipants will likely come from a range of backgrounds - administrators, library staff, instructional designers and faculty across disciplines. Facilitated small and large group discussions will allow these stakeholders to share perspectives on the potential for OER to transform teaching and learning at the University of Namibia. Rich debates may unfold around striking the right balance between cost savings and pedagogical effectiveness when integrating OER. Hands-on activities would require participants to collaboratively search OER repositories, evaluate the licensing and quality of materials, and explore ways they could be adapted and remixed. Peer-to-peer coaching may organically develop, with quick learners assisting those less familiar with OER. Laughter and frustration may both arise during this process of mutual discovery. Brainstorming sessions could lead to animated exchanges as people pitch ideas back and forth for innovating curricula with OER. The session leaders would aim to create a judgment-free environment so creativity can flourish. Groups would be tasked with developing concrete proposals for OER integration in blended contexts across institutional, national and African higher education landscapes. Throughout the sessions, a spirit of openness and collective purpose should emerge. The shared mission will be to chart an actionable path forward that leverages OER and empowers teaching faculty. Participants would feel they are contributing to something bigger than themselves or their institutional roles. The collaboration itself will help lay foundations for continued OER momentum at the University and beyond.Publication A Conversation: Independent Institutions Weigh in on Course Marking(2024-04-04) Gwozdz, Lindsey; Lattner, Alexandria; Railey, Kevin; Herold, Katrina; Rybakova, KatieOur session is intended to help spread awareness of the actual processes of course marking, particularly for independent institutions which are sometimes left on the periphery of Open Education. Through the voices of four independent institution representatives, participants will get to hear an overview of the experiences of why and how course marking was implemented and what it means for their students. Each panelist will touch on successes and challenges and their unique workflows developed over the last year of this initiative as well as technology, staffing, and marketing considerations. The session is open to all levels of attendees. Lindsey will start the session off with a brief definition of course marking to ensure that everyone can participate even if they’re not as informed on the topic. We will utilize real-time polling and a shared Google Doc for participants to help us compile a larger and more thorough resource list that we will share back into the community.Publication A Conversation on Using AI to Create Interactive Open Educational Resources(2024-04-05) Shea, Peter; Walton, Devan; Grenier, J.M.During this session we will delve into the transformative potential of AI in enhancing educational content and pedagogy. Our discussion will begin with a brief introduction to AI technologies and their relevance to open educational resources, setting the stage for an engaging journey into the future of education. To ensure an interactive and participatory experience, we will employ real-time polls to gauge audience opinions on key topics and challenges. We will also encourage the use of a dedicated Twitter hashtag to extend our conversation beyond the physical confines of the conference room, enabling a dynamic exchange of ideas and best practices in real time. This session is designed for faculty, instructional designers, library staff, and technology specialists interested in the intersection of AI and education.Publication Unlocking Potential: Open Pedagogy's Impact on Liberal Arts Education and Employability(2024-04-04) Simon, Nicolas P.; Farrell, MadisonThis presentation will discuss how students developed Liberal Arts skills when participating in Open Pedagogy projects. During the Spring and Fall of 2023, students in four courses of SOC 100 Introduction to Sociology participated in Open Pedagogy Projects. Throughout the semester, students identified open peer-reviewed scholarly articles from the Directory of Open Access Journals to complement the chapters of an Introduction to Sociology textbook. Additionally, they created both reading questions and multiple-choice questions for select articles. Their final assessment required them to explain how these two exercises helped them develop their Liberal Arts skills and predict how they would be able to transfer these skills to their future work. Of the 128 students registered in the four courses, 72 (56.25%) signed a consent form authorizing the use of their work for research purposes. During the presentation, Dr. Simon will present the assignment, explain the consent process, and provide some findings from the students' self-reflection. Then, Madison will share her experience as a student in the class during the Spring 2023 semester and as a Teaching Assistant during the Fall 2023 semester. We hope that it will inspire you to promote the Open Pedagogy initiative on your campus.Publication Building the dream team: equity-focused OER support(2024-04-04) Schimizzi, Joanna; Egan, JessAttendees will first be provided with a sample OER project and asked to use small group discussions to identify the different roles that contributed to the creation of the OER. While many OER authors envision they must do everything on their own, our model from the ROTEL project will show the different collaborative structures that can support OER authors. Next, participants will take a short survey to determine their areas of interest and strength that can be delineated for collaboration on an OER project. Participants will then remix a provided template on OER Commons to identify stakeholders within their own ecosystem for possible collaboration. This will help make their own thinking visible to themselves and to other OER authors. Attendees will return to the initial OER sample to look specifically at accessibility, assessment and equity within the resource. To encourage collective questioning, participants will [analyze existing OERs using a modern tool] collaborate in small group discussions to use a tool that was created by the ROTEL Publishing Support Team that encourages inquiry. At the end of small group discussions, participants will complete a virtual poll to identify the areas of focus that a collaborative team at their institution could support.Publication Sustaining an OER Advisory Council for the Connecticut State College and Universities System(2024-04-04) Battaglia, Hayley; Maynard, JillianThe CSCU OER Advisory Council is a group formed of members from the 17 CSCU institutions and UConn charged with supporting OER efforts across the system and the work of the statewide CT OER Coordinating Council. This presentation will provide an overview of the history of the Council including its formation, previous successes, and current initiatives and challenges through a sustainability lens. We will share details and circumstances surrounding the founding of this group, the original charge and how our work has evolved over time, the structure and regular function of the group, as well as a review of the different projects and initiatives the Council has developed and supported. Examples of this work include advocacy for the CT OER Coordinating Council’s grant program, implementation of course marking in CT State Community College, the creation/curation and distribution of resources to support CSCU faculty in adoption, revision, and creation of Open content, and more. We will include interactive polls to engage attendees and moderate a Q&A discussion after our presentation. Since our topic is focused on administration of OER initiatives, we believe all levels of expertise could benefit.Publication Planting in Rocky Soil: Helping OEP Thrive(2024-04-05) Jordan, JenniferPublication Process of Creating Multiethnic and Multimodal OER for Teaching and Learning in Francophone Contexts.(2024-04-05) Atta, Adou Jean-Constant; Boultif, Amal; Koné, El Hadji YayaIn this session, we will go through the critical landscape of OER development, focusing on the creation of inclusive, collaboratively engaging learning modules using the Research Design method. We will present the authoring interface, the tools, and the multimodal supports used, and we will also talk about the validation phases of the first two modules of the OER. We will discuss the need to develop a variety of multiethnic French-speaking resources, adapted to the teaching of French in minority contexts. To encourage participant engagement, we will include two polls that will be conducted in real-time during the presentation using the online tool Mentimeter. The first poll will be done before the presentation is delivered. The objective is to collect participants' opinions on the educational issues of the OER. The second survey will be conducted at the end of the presentation with the aim of evaluating the OER from the method used to produce the resource and its relevance in the context of minority education. The purpose of this presentation is to raise the issue of producing inclusive and engaging OER in the context of a French-speaking linguistic minority and to contribute to the discourse on the development of OER for equitable education.Publication Accessibility, Assessment, and Awareness; the AAA of OER(2024-04-04) Egan, JessPublication Lunch(2024-04-04) Committee, SteeringPublication Lessons Learned from Fighting Against Inclusive Access: A Sociological Reflection(2024-04-05) Simon, Nicolas; Croughwell, JenniferIn this session, we will discuss the lessons learned from fighting against inclusive access using the sociological perspective of social movement and different authors such as Marx, Durkheim, or Bourdieu. We will start with the importance of being proactive, instead of reactive, in educating our audience and equipping the members of the OER and Open Pedagogy community with the tools necessary to organize the response to Inclusive Access. Then, we will focus on the importance of being brave, fearless, and at the same time realistic about the environment in which we operate. Next, we will conclude by presenting the importance of understanding the OER and Open Pedagogy community through the cultural lenses of obedience, alienation, but also emancipation and liberation. We will recognize the importance of empathy toward our peers and respect the different strategies, resources, and timelines of the members of our community. Finally, we will end this session with an open forum for individuals to share their own encounters with inclusive access struggles within their institutions, systems, or states. Join us as we unite in the fight against Inclusive Access, advocating for the openness that our democratic and educational institutions rightfully deserve.Publication Open Anatomy & Physiology Lab VR: Applications and Recommendations for VR in Education(2024-04-05) Winchell, BrooksAt Quinsigamond Community College, the Center for Academic Excellence has been working with faculty since fall 2022 to bring VR into the classroom. They started with one headset and a paid VR application. However, in the spring of 2023, they raised the funds to purchase 7 additional headsets and created a plan to develop an opensource application for Anatomy & Physiology 1 & 2 students, called Anatomy & Physiology Lab VR. The app was finished in the fall of 2023, and they piloted it with 8 students from A&P 1, 8 students from A&P 2, and 14 students from a radiology technician class. Student and faculty feedback from the pilots was overwhelmingly positive with many students claiming that the app made learning easier and added excitement. In this session, the presenter will discuss the process of developing and piloting the opensource VR application at QCC. In addition, the session will review many challenges and barriers to implementation and early successes observed. Toward the end, we will discuss lessons learned and suggestions for VR adoption on campus and the development of in-house VR apps. To encourage attendee participation, the session will start with a 4 question ZOOM poll. It will also include numerous visuals of equipment and invite ongoing audience participation. At the end, there will be time for questions and audience comments. This session will be of interest to anyone hoping to learn more about VR/XR in education, anyone interested in developing or piloting a VR program on campus, or anyone interested in opensource VR. Part of the session will be somewhat technical, so it is recommended for an intermediate to advanced level participant.Publication Lunch(2024-04-05) Committee, SteeringPublication Open Resources, Open Minds: Building Global Communities with the World Librarians(2024-04-05) Dooley, Theresa; Bishop, Samantha; Tanikella, Sravya; Krishnan, Hari; O'Connor, SamanthaThe first 15 minutes of the presentation will feature a brief overview of the history of world librarians, our mission to deliver information as requested by our global partners who most commonly reside in the Global South, without bias or gatekeeping, and acknowledging the need for that service as members of the Global North. In the first part of the presentation, we’ll also be covering a brief overview of our technical workflow, and how we are able to support this type of information sharing with limited internet access. In the remaining 20 minutes of our presentation time, faculty advisors will pose questions to our student panel about their experiences, ranging from notable requests they’ve received (responses include questions about making toys out of trash, female genital mutilation, and the Bible) to how their involvement in the club has impacted them in their respective fields. A common theme will be centered around the role of Open in everything from their own reliance on the internet, their education, and global information sharing. Because we hope to expand this model to other campuses, a survey will be shared with attendees to gauge interest in doing so. A final 10 minutes will be devoted to answering questions from the audience.Publication Statewide Student Course Materials Surveys: Lessons from a Unique Partnership(2024-04-04) bell, steven; seaman, jeff; seaman, juliaAs the end of grant funding neared, Affordable Learning PA (ALPA) sought to allocate resources to a statewide course materials survey. ALPA lacked the personnel and expertise to replicate surveys conducted in Florida and Virginia. They are labor intensive, especially data analysis and reporting. ALPA instead chose a partner with the necessary survey expertise. Given its prior OER survey experience, ALPA identified Bay View Analytics to assist with development and administration. Despite not having conducted a state-wide student survey such as this, Bay View saw this work as valuable and agreed to partner with ALPA. Panelists will discuss the evolution of their partnership in exploring their mutual interest in conducting a statewide student course materials survey. Special attention will be paid to barriers that arose and how the two partners worked collaboratively to overcome them. Attendees will learn how the survey was based on existing statewide surveys and modified for the current application. Panelists will share information and findings from the survey results in discussing the efficacy of the survey efforts, with comparisons to what other statewide surveys have found. They will discuss how similar/different the findings are and whether there is an expectation that future statewide course materials surveys would deviate little or a great deal from those findings of prior statewide surveys. Panelists will conclude with a set of recommendations for other state OER associations that will be considering conducting their own statewide survey. Audience engagement will be achieved through interactive polling and live chat activity.Publication Creating Meaningful Connections through an OER Faculty Learning Community: Reflections from a First-Time Facilitator(2024-04-05) Baskin, GinelleHow can librarians promote the value of OER to faculty and build community around open initiatives once OER grant money has run out? This presentation tells the story of how one librarian spearheaded an OER faculty learning community at Middle Tennessee State University. Designed to build a community of learners around the topic of open education, this FLC aligned with the university’s goals of expanding the use of open educational resources and promoting the value of OER to faculty. This presentation begins with an overview of how this FLC was structured and funded. Then, the presenter will share details of the type of work involved with running an FLC. She’ll discuss specific tasks such as choosing content, running meetings, and communicating with participants. Finally, the presenter will share overall lessons learned and will discuss key challenges and outcomes she experienced facilitating this FLC. This presentation is best for any level of interest (beginner to advanced) and is ideal for librarians, instructional designers, and administrators interested in facilitating a similar faculty learning community at their institutions. To engage and connect with the audience, the presenter will use Mentimeter to interact with participants throughout the presentation.Publication Beyond Affordability: Collaboration, Reuse, Translation and Localization of OER in Ukraine(2024-04-05) Wetzler, Jennryn; Kolesnykova, Tetiana; Buist-Zhuk, MiraThis presentation shares a real story of how OER enabled reuse and adaptation across countries enabled by networks, humble funds, and growing friendships. It will also be a call to action for audience members to volunteer to support open education in Ukraine, where the need for localized OER is acute. Our story begins with a local University in the Ukrainian city of Dnipro during the ongoing war. The USUST librarians, staff and faculty were working on an Open Textbooks project. Open Textbooks and OER around specific skills are sorely needed in Ukrainian language. One librarian, Tetiana Kolesnykova, and her colleagues sought to secure and expand access to open education in Ukrainian, at a national level. They began to collaborate with a European network of Open Education Librarians (ENOEL) and networks of open education advocates (Creative Commons Open Education Platform and OE Global). Both community networks hoped to support Ukrainians’ open education efforts but lacked significant funds to do so. With a member of both networks, Ukrainian librarians started a project to translate and localize an award winning MOOC on OER into Ukrainian to upskill Ukrainian librarians and staff. The MOOC was openly licensed, and the librarians secured limited funds to cover some costs. This experience enabled new OER in Ukrainian. It demonstrates the promise of open education amidst extreme challenges of wartime. We invite the audience to join us in the next chapter of this story, finding more ways to translate useful OER into Ukrainian.Publication What I Wish Someone had Told Me: Insights on building sustainable impact with open education(2024-04-05) Greene, Terry; McKinney, Andrew; Curtis, Julie; Gonzales, Millie; Billings, MarilynThis session brings together panelists who have led significant open education initiatives in a variety of contexts. They have pushed boundaries and forged trails for others to emulate. By bringing together visionary minds with wide-ranging experiences, this panel discussion will surface insights that apply to multiple facets of the OER journey. The session begins with a real-time poll inviting attendees to share their context and experience level with open education. Leading into the discussion, the moderator will invite attendees to consider the panel questions. This approach provides opportunities for everyone not only to benefit from panelists’ perspectives, but also to reflect on their own lessons learned. Panel questions may include: What is a key insight you wish someone had told you when you were getting started with open education? What person or experience taught you this lesson? Community is in the DNA of open education. What’s an essential lesson you’ve learned about supporting and sustaining a community around open education? Share a notable failure and what you learned from this failure. Describe a moment when you realized your work was making a real difference. What did this teach you about “impact” and how to demonstrate impact? In the final ten minutes, the audience will be invited to join the panel discussion with questions and comments. A final online poll will invite attendees to share: What is a key insight you have gleaned in your work with open education? Poll results will be captured and shared after the session concludes.Publication Logical or Radical: Open Educational Practices at Private Universities(2024-04-04) Barrientos, Quetzalli; Bane, TreasaOpen educational practices bring many challenges: they are not a panacea and they require alternative, creative assessments. Rather than approaching “open educational resources” as another thing to learn, understand, build, and implement amidst burnout, there are many activities and practices happening at the Harvard Graduate School of Education and Washington University. For this roundtable, we will define non-monographic/textbook open educational practices by providing examples and a praxis that visualizes degrees of openness. Then, we will explain how we discuss and support open educational practices with different campus groups and contexts. Finally, we’ll review different challenges and reasons OER and open educational practices have not reached full potential at Harvard or WashU. Open educational practices appeal to universities like ours because they address more than cost savings and they situate order and community to common practices that go under different names from “open education.” Open Educational Practices recognize that not everything can or should be openly shared or free, and they can represent marginalized voices and realize the learning power of failure. In the true spirit of open educational practices, our session is intended to learn from each other and discuss how to resolve certain questions. Where institutional support is lacking, there is a community that has an answer. We will run questions from Poll Everywhere in the background to lead and facilitate a conversation with the audience. While all attendees are welcome, attendees with intermediate experience from private universities may benefit most from our conversation.