Session 4: Open Educational Resources & Copyright

Session Introduction

As you may have noticed, there was no textbook you had to purchase for this course. Many of the readings are available as creative commons licensed open educational resources and the assessments were designed with the intention of them being authentic, useful, and shareable. This intention stems from the influence the open education movement has had on higher education in Ontario. As you will read in the articles and by watching Dr. Jhangiani’s keynote address from December 2017, the open education movement is about more than just cost. There are social justice elements, issues around equity and access, and pedagogical considerations. This session we will look at how and why we could (or couldn’t), should (or shouldn’t) incorporate open educational practices into our own teaching and learning.

For a quick overview of OER efficacy, watch this 5 minute A Review of the Effectiveness & Perceptions of Open Educational Resources As Compared to Textbooks embedded below.

The quiz this week will be based on Ontario Extend. (2017) Comparing Creative Commons with Copyright. https://extend.ecampusontario.ca/curator-creative-commons-copyright/  so take a moment to explore that short module.

Then spend some time searching through the eCampusOntario Open Text Library to find an interesting discipline-relevant textbook for you to critique and review. If you can’t find anything appropriate, continue on to the CampusOntario’s (2020) Spotlight on OER repositories to see the vast number of OERs available. You are not expected to review the whole book. One or two chapters will suffice.

Your OER Critique assignment asks you to select an OER relevant or interesting to you.

You will be asked to evaluated the OER quantitatively (on a scale of 1-5, where 5 is excellent and 1 is poor) and qualitatively to comment on why you made this selection. If you would like a template for your evaluation, download the Open Educational Resources Evaluation Rubric and fill in the sections. This document is also available on the Course Materials page. The rubric is based upon the work of Evelyn, S. & Kromer, J (2019) which is included in the readings list as an optional reading if you would like to see how you can use OER evaluation as a tool for open pedagogy. Dr. Jhiangiani’s keynote addresses Open Pedagogy and how it can transform assessment, which we will revisit in future sessions.

Rationale

There is a wealth of open online resources available for reuse.

Connection to Theory

Open pedagogy is an emerging field that is rooted in fundamental beliefs about access, democracy, and affordability.

Connection to Practice

Leveraging the bounty of resources already created can save time, build community, and increase quality.

Session Resources

• Evelyn, S. & Kromer, J (2019). Collaborating with Students to Find and Evaluate Open Educational Resources in Engineering.
• Ontario Extend. (2020) Comparing Creative Commons with Copyright.
• Ontario Extend (2020). Spotlight on Repositories.

Learning Activities

Reflection

• What resonated most with you from Dr. Jhiangiani’s keynote / Open Pedagogy reading?
• What surprised you?
• Did you disagree with anything?
• How does this relate to your experience as a student? as a teacher?
• Briefly describe the OER you were able to find to start to generate your OER critique and review.