About the Summer Conversations

[LizYata]

Welcome to Summer 2022! We heard from our members that many are reducing their summer commitments this year in order to recharge after two exhausting years. In light of that feedback, we asked folks what sort of conversations we might engage in during the summer months where most of the activity can be done from anywhere, anytime (Beach, Lakeside anyone??)

These conversations are an opportunity to reflect on the work we all engage in so passionately during the academic year and learn a little more about what attracts us to this work and keeps us motivated over the long haul.

Three topics were selected at our March Members Meetings and we invite you to participate asynchronously or synchronously in the monthly (June, July, August) discussions at whatever level you are comfortable.

All live meetings will be at 12pm PDT/2pm CDT/ 3pm EDT

Topic for August:

Research and Impact of OER

While there are a number of streams within the research related to the impact of open educational resources, much of the attention has been on textbook cost savings for students. Specifically, this research addresses the impact of high-cost required course materials and the time-adverse effect this has on students who are unable to purchase these materials. Central to this discussion is the research from the Florida Virtual Campus. More recently, research has focused on the impact of the adoptio…

Topic for July:

Strategic Planning for Open Education

As we are all fully aware, promoting open educational practices at a given institution can be approached in a variety of ways and involve countless activities and stakeholders. It can also seem overwhelming, especially if you’ve been exposed to the myriad strategies applied at institutions across the world to grow and sustain their open education initiatives. There are unique strategies for faculty outreach, securing administrative support, empowering student voice, collaborating within and beyo…

Topic for June:

Social Justice and Open Educational Practices Summer Conversations 2022

Although it is generally accepted that adoption of open educational resources to replace commercial textbooks reduces cost barriers and increases equitable access for low-income and otherwise marginalized students, the question of how these resources engage marginalized students and address their particular needs remains an open question. Multiple studies comparing open textbooks to commercial textbooks have found a similar lack of diverse voices and cultures represented in both. This summer…

[mmills]

Great discussion topic and certainly one that is crucial to the advancement of the field. No longer can the focus of OER be on cost savings. The focus has to shift to being one of social justice; we have to recognize that under-represented voices are not seen enough in commercial texts. OEP allow us to customize our work, to bring in the voices our students are missing.