OPEN EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES

A DEAD END OR A HIGHWAY?

By Beffie WIlliams

THE BENEFITS

SQUARE PEG, ROUND HOLE PHENOMENON

It’s tough finding the right tools for your teaching needs. OER can be updated with the most current, up-to-date information available – giving students a better learning experience.

DOES ONE SIZE REALLY FIT ALL?

OER can be quickly revised, updated and formatted to fit the specific needs of the teachers and students, creating a better classroom experience.

Books just can’t compete. They aren’t able to tweaked or revised to fit the specific needs of the classroom.

WHY NOT TEACH A MILLION?

OER affords equal opportunity education to those who may not have the means – financially, physically, socioeconomically … you can teach one classroom or you can teach all over the world.

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WHICH STREET ARE YOU ON?

Let’s face it, books are expensive, oftentimes inhibiting a student’s ability to take a class simply because they can’t afford the book(s). That just doesn’t seem fair.

OER offers free or low-cost options to students. Most everyone is searching for ways to save money – why not make it easier for students (and parents) to do the same?

THE DRAWBACKS

HIGH MAINTENANCE WHAT’S THE REAL COST OF “FREE”

OER?Due to continuous additions, deletions, and contributions being made by others, OER will likely require more upkeep – taking away valuable time from the classroom, which in turn could lead to teacher and student frustration. This can include:

• web site name changes• verification of new information• searching for new information

when the old information becomes obsolete

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More now, less later

Less Contributions Less Money

As individuals begin to realize the irrevocable nature of CC licensure, they may be less inclined to contribute their time, knowledge and resources to OER.

Colleges may stop contributing financially to OER once their grant monies run out – leading to less and less use of OER for their course offerings.

OLD DOG, NEW TRICKS New concepts are a

tough sell Many people don’t do

well with change – they find it cumbersome, time consuming and simply not worth their time

It takes time, energy and money to spread the word about new concepts

Complacency

As the saying goes - Don’t let the TV raise

your kids.

Similarly, we don’t want to “let computers teach our students.” OER is a fantastic resource, but we can’t afford to allow OER to replace a teacher’s presence in the classroom.

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