Is OER Enough? Experiences from a Textbook Transformation Project

• In Event: 2222 - Teaching and Learning Symposium Roundtable Session
  In Informal Discussion Roundtable: Table 02. Technology Serving Teaching and Learning

Abstract

The recent push by the Obama administration to make community college free to anyone who wants to attend makes it imperative that the costs associated with pursuing a degree as affordable as possible (Mason, 2015). Open Educational Resources (OER) have proven a worthy response to the rising cost of textbooks. A review of the literature indicates substantial evidence for the success of the OER model; in fact, for community colleges in particular, the use of OER is considered a “best practice” (Myran, 2013). In line with this research, I completed a “textbook transformation” for introductory sociology classes at a community college in the southern United States. The goal of the project was to increase enrollment and retention as well as completion rates of students. In working towards achieving this goal, I adopted an Open Educational Resources textbook combined with supplemental videos on course concepts and ideas. To evaluate and assess the effectiveness of this conversion I measured students’ perceptions and experiences and course success rates with OER materials compared against courses not using OER materials. Results of the change to OER materials have been mixed. Students reported very positive feelings towards the OER textbook as well as increased access to course materials. However, both online and face-to-face sections of the course showed greatly increased drop/fail/withdraw (DFW) rates in the semester immediately post-transformation as well as lower course grade averages. I found this deeply concerning. In the second semester following the transformation, DFW rates approached those of pre-transformation. Adopting an OER textbook has played an important role in removing some of the barriers to student’s success, but it is not clear if these resources provide adequate benefits for student mastery of course concepts and material.

Author

• Christina Wolfe, Georgia Highlands College