Authors: Hailey Babb and Winni Zhang
Institution: SPARC
Countries: Canada, United States
Topic: Global Collaboration, Strategies, & Policies in Open Education
Sector: Higher Education
UNESCO Area of Focus: Building capacity
Session Format: Presentation
Abstract
Students are the end users of open education and the victims of big textbook corporations. As a result, the student voice is essential in the fight for open education. Financial barriers to access have become increasingly relevant for students who choose to pursue post-secondary education. Student leaders are engaged in the fight on the ground, but their terms are often short and cover many different priorities and platforms. While this reality has become normative across higher education, student leaders are continuing to seek solutions to reducing these financial burdens. This panel for other students to hear from past student leaders that led open ed projects on their campus, and for faculty/staff to understand how they can help support and uplift student voices. By encouraging librarians, faculty members, and other more permanent institutional staff to involve students in their advocacy, we are ensuring the movement continues to reach new advocates and that student-led initiatives remain intact year after year.Keywords
Student, Student voice, Leadership, Collaboration, Advocacy
