Month: May 2023

I have been receiving feedback from my professor, Dr. Irwin DeVries, who has an extensive background in OER. He has given me some helpful resources and tips to guide me in my journey, including shedding some light in particular with OER textbooks in K-12. 

Although I was not planning on going into depth with open textbooks, it may be a side journey that is beneficial to pursue. Currently in my practice, the available Social Studies texts are from 1999; these resources are considerably out of date, especially in regard to the new, updated curriculum that has been recently implemented in British Columbia (Government of B.C, 2020).  Budgets have always been a concern in education, and it would require substantial funds to replace over 100 outdated textbooks (BC Teachers Federation, 2022). Here is where open textbooks could make a difference. 

From an initial search into this topic, I discovered that open textbooks, particularly open/adapted texts, were shown to be higher quality than published textbooks (Kimmons, 2015). In a student survey of grade 6-9 students using open science textbooks, an overwhelming majority stated they were more engaged than with traditional textbooks, and over half the participants listed benefits such as being able to highlight the text and more understandable explanations (Morales & Baker, 2018). A brief search for “open textbooks B.C” revealed a site called BC Open Campus and BC Open Collection, a subsidiary of BC Open Campus. The latter of these sites has materials that educators are able to adapt and remix, although most of these materials seem to be geared towards post-secondary education (BC Open Collection, n.d.). 

This seems to be the case when I am conducting research; there are a plethora of helpful OER, but the ones I have found are tailored for post-secondary education.

For my next update, I will mention some of the barriers I have found with OER and grade school education.

---

References

BC Open Collection. (n.d.). https://collection.bccampus.ca/ 

Government of B.C. (2020). How we changed B.C’s curriculum. https://curriculum.gov.bc.ca/curriculum/changing-curriculum 

BC Teachers Federation. (2022). BCTF education funding brief 2023: Funding inclusive and flourishing schools. https://www.bctf.ca/docs/default-source/briefs-and-submissions/education-funding-briefs/bctf-education-funding-brief-2023.pdf?sfvrsn=c8cf71d2_2. 

intheacademia. (2012, June 6). The OERs – Open Educational Resources [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-xGRztrWv-k

Kimmons, R. (2015). Oer quality and adaptation in k-12: Comparing teacher evaluations of copyright-restricted, open, and open/adapted textbooks. The International Review of Research in Open and Distributed Learning, 16(5). https://doi.org/10.19173/irrodl.v16i5.2341

Liao, Y-C. J. (n.d.). Open educational resources. The K-12 Educational technology handbook. Retrieved May 11, 2023, from https://edtechbooks.org/k12handbook/oer

Morales, R., & Baker, A. (2018). Secondary students’ perceptions of open science textbooks. Journal of Interactive Media in Education, 2018(1). https://doi.org/10.5334/jime.455

Team members: Terry Kent, Gill Dixon, Megan Li, Jess Sirois

Our team task for this course was to critically analyze a piece of technology; we unanimously chose to look at MOOCs. We were familiar with what MOOCs are but wanted to know more about this technology. In order to critically analyze MOOCs, we needed to decide what we wanted to focus on and how best to conduct our research. 

Background

We looked to Fawns’ (2022) and Selwyn’s (2022) statements regarding the significance of learner background, context, and values that affect learner experiences. We decided to focus our analysis around the following research questions:

1.     How do our differing backgrounds shape our educational experience, the learning experience, and the perceived value of the course’s effectiveness? 

2.     Who is this course appropriate for, and who may benefit from the learning experience?

Findings

Based on our findings, four key aspects affected our experience:

1- Course design: our team found that a lack of course design features, such as a lack of active learning, negatively affected our engagement and motivation. Sujatha and Kavitha (2018) suggest a need for advanced content and appropriate assessments to keep learners engaged and motivated. 

2- Accessibility: Accessibility affects the quality and reliability of course materials and negatively impacts learners’ ability to navigate and benefit from the course (Iniesto et al., 2016). Our MOOC had limited accessibility options and many of the links were broken, which hindered our ability to maneuver the course. It’s important for MOOC developers to prioritize these aspects to ensure a positive and valuable learning experience for all participants

3- Accountability and Assessment: These two aspects are vital for a credible and effective learning experience. As we discovered with our MOOC experience, the lack of mandatory assessments and projects compromised our accountability and therefore reduced learner engagement . To ensure engagement and accountability, assessment methods should be considered (Gowlett, 2021).

4-Context in course alignment: Acknowledging learners’ diverse backgrounds, needs, and expectations is crucial in the development of MOOCs. Our team noted that there was limited alignment with our personal and professional contexts which lessened the course’s perceived value, leading to decreased engagement and motivation. Curriculum mapping (the alignment of learning activities, outcomes, and assessments with course and program goals) is critical in creating engaging and valuable courses (Teaching Gateway, n.d.)

Recommendations- Things to consider when selecting MOOCs

1-Assumptions made about the course might not be applicable. Thoroughly assess the course content and outcomes. 

2-Find a course that has assessment methods that will promote engagement and accountability  (Levy, 2011) (Gowlett, 2021).  

3-When choosing a course, consider the content, relevancy to immediate learning, and sense of progression and achievement, as these aspects have been found to be important for engagement (Wilkinson, n.d.). 

---

References

Fawns, T. (2022). An entangled pedagogy: Looking beyond the pedagogy—technology dichotomy. Postdigital Science and Education, 4(3), 711–728. https://doi.org/10.1007/s42438-022-00302-7

Gowlett, D. (2021). Assessment in MOOCs. Ecampusontario.pressbooks.pub. https://ecampusontario.pressbooks.pub/tlhe720assessment/chapter/assessment-in-moocs/

Iniesto, F., McAndrew, P., Minocha, S., & Coughlan, T. (2016). Accessibility of MOOCs: Understanding the Provider Perspective. Journal of Interactive Media in Education, 2016(1). https://doi.org/10.5334/jime.430

Levy, D. (July, 2011). Lessons learned from participating in a connectivist Massive Online Open Course (MOOC) (The 4th annual SLOAN international symposium: Emerging technologies for online learning (ET4OL ) at: San Jose, CA) [Conference Paper].

Selwyn, N. (2010). Looking beyond learning: Notes towards the critical study of educational technology. Journal of Computer Assisted Learning, 26(1), 65–73. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2729.2009.00338.x

Sujatha, R., & Kavitha, D. (2018). Learner retention in MOOC environment: Analyzing the role of motivation, self-efficacy and perceived effectiveness. International Journal of Education and Development Using Information and Communication 

Teaching Gateway. (n.d.). Alignment of learning outcomes at course and program levels. University of New South Wales. Retrieved May 5, 2023, from https://www.teaching.unsw.edu.au/alignment-learning-outcomes-course-and-program

Wilkinson, D. (n.d.). Online learning: How to increase learner engagement. The OR Briefings. Retrieved May 3, 2023, from https://oxford-review.com/online-earning-increase-engagement/