Although cost savings is an important benefit of OER, there are many optimizations that can be implemented to promote student success because of OER open licensing. OER offer faculty the academic freedom to customize, personalize, and diversify their course materials to create an engaging and enriching learning environment for all students. OER supports the opportunity to incorporate open pedagogy which permits students to contribute their voices and experiences to the curriculum (Wiley & Hilton III, 2018; Van Allen & Katz, 2020). Moreover, faculty can redesign OER into more interactive experiences for students by placing the OER content into free software platforms that integrate content with videos, quiz items, and other types of self-check activities (Wynants & Dennis, 2022). [Image by Kelly Donovan & Shelli Wynants}
Case Study
Wynants, S. A., & Dennis, J. M. (2022, March). Redesigning a research methods course with personalized, interactive OER: A case study of student perceptions and performance. Journal of Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, 22(1), https://scholarworks.iu.edu/journals/index.php/josotl/article/view/31706
Abstract: This case study examines student learning outcomes derived from the redesign of an undergraduate child development research methods course, replacing a commercial textbook with Open Educational Resources (OER), which were remixed into interactive lessons. Using survey and exam performance data, two areas were evaluated: (1) students' experiences with the OER lessons; and (2) students' exam results from two OER sections compared to two previous commercial textbook sections taught by the same instructor. No significant differences in exam performance between the two groups were observed; however, student perceptions of the OER lessons indicated strong satisfaction. Implications of these findings, such as OER benefits for teaching and learning, are discussed.
Recommendation #1: Optimize the content of OER to be Diverse, Equitable, and Inclusive (DEI).
One of the powerful elements that OER with open licensing offers is the opportunity for faculty to diversify their instructional materials to have more inclusive representation (e.g., photos, examples, case studies, research data that are inclusive of underrepresented genders, races, and classes). OER also lends itself to open pedagogy, the practice of engaging students as co-creators of course content and community knowledge rather than simply as consumers of it. For more information and examples on open pedagogy, visit The Open Pedagogy Notebook. Also see Open Pedagogy section under OER Use in the Classroom in the Roadmap.
For examples of OER redesign with a DEI focus, please visit the Open for Antiracism Participant Showcases on the Community College Consortium for OER; for professional development related to OER and anti-racist and open pedagogy, visit Canvas Commons for two formats of the Open for Anti-Racism Canvas course available for use or adaption (each course image below is linked to its course in Canvas Commons).
Recommendation #2: Implement Universal Design for Learning (UDL) principles to add “interactivity” (active learning) into OER.
Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is a teaching paradigm and mindset that embraces student learning variability and instruction variety for removing barriers from the learning environment to optimize success for all students. When instructors use multiple ways of presenting course content, multiple methods of engaging students, and a variety of assessment activities, student learning, inclusion, and success are strengthened.
One of the ways to apply UDL to OER is to add “interactivity” to promote active learning. A recent meta-analysis of interactive features of e-texts found they benefited reading performance (Clinton-Lisell, Seipel, Gilpin, & Litzinger, 2021). Many platforms or software, like LibreTexts, Pressbooks, etc., can facilitate “interactivity” of OER content. Because OER are openly licensed, faculty can reuse, remix, and change materials to deliver course content in alternative, more engaging ways than traditional textbooks by integrating digital course reading materials with videos, quiz items, and other types of self-check activities to promote active learning. For example, both LibreTexts and Pressbooks have H5P available to create a variety of rich, interactive activities. When building interactive items into the OER content, it is important to check the accessibility of the software or platform being used (see accessibility information within OER Creation Tools in the Roadmap).
For more information and examples of UDL in higher education, visit CAST’s UDL on Campus website. To learn more about applying UDL to one’s overall course design, see CSU’s Quality and Learning (QLT) evaluation rubric with examples.
