Open Education 2016

In order to develop an infrastructure to support OER degrees at a large multi-college system, a number of roles have been identified to support the identification and provision of OER courses towards degrees. The roles include a mix of District-level personnel, college administrators, management, faculty, librarians, instructional designers, student services personnel and more.

This panel discussion will provide an opportunity for participants to learn about the roles, responsibilities, successes and lessons learned and how these roles have affected scaling of OER.

The panel will include several people in these roles who will also be able to share their reasons for joining the project and their experiences:

Alisa Cooper, Co-chair Maricopa Millions Project and English Faculty Glendale Community College
Tracey Haynie, Math Faculty, Scottsdale Community College
Hazel Davis, Library Faculty, Rio Salado College
George Gregg, Chemistry Faculty, Glendale Community Collee
Lisa Worthy, Psychology Faculty, Glendale Community College

Additionally, the members of the audience will be asked to share their models and roles for scaling their OER projects.

Since the 12th Annual Open Education Conference, staff members at Boise State and Clemson University have sought to establish institution-wide initiatives around open educational resources (OER). Despite holding a shared identity as public universities, these two institutions-one located in the Northwestern and one in the Southeastern United States-harbor distinct cultures, climates, and agendas as they relate to the sustainable implementation and support of OER initiatives. Simply stated, common solutions for spreading awareness and adoption of OER at Boise State and Clemson seemed unlikely.

Yet, over the last year, administrators, librarians, researchers, and technologists of both universities have consulted each other, surveyed additional institutions, interviewed outside representatives, analyzed strategic materials, vetted technology partnerships, developed pilot programs, built digital infrastructure, and recruited campus populations, under the notion that open education is appropriate for and important to the missions of their respective institutions. And while administrative programs have now been established at the institutional level, certain variables remain that help and hinder proliferation of OER at each university.

If minimal institutional support, a lack of technological tools for sharing and adapting resources, inconsistent skills and time for users, varying quality or appropriateness of resources, and issues of trust between faculty and administrators can be considered common threats to the creation of long-lasting OER programs in higher ed., the members of this panel (having faced these stakes firsthand) claim that the best approach toward tackling such problems is an open one that spans disciplines, departments, and institutions.

In pursuit of sharing novel experiences and identifying common ground, panel members will discuss their recent research and experiences in founding, supporting, and sustaining OER initiatives at universities in the U.S.

This mega-panel will discuss lessons learned about effective OER adoption advocacy.

Lansing Community College is a Guided Pathways school, as such, it has created clear Program of Study (degree) maps that define the courses students take, and the order in which they are taken. The goal of Guided Pathways is to increase timely completion of degrees while focusing on the educational needs that best match the students' goals. Another main initiatives at Lansing Community College is Operation 100% in which the goal "is nothing less than 100% completion for the students in degree, certificate, and/or transfer pathways." Through the adoption and successful use of OER and Open Materials both the Operation 100% initiative and Guided Pathways can be strengthened as the research shows that students who use OER are able to complete more coursework since there is no cost for course materials. Therefore, creating Z-degrees within Guided Pathways is a way the presenters believe Lansing Community College will be able to support their students needs best. This session focuses on the collaboration between the Guided Pathways Coordinator, the OER Project Manager, the Operation 100% Faculty Project Manager, full-time and adjunct faculty in advocating for the implementation of sustainable Z-degrees within Guided Pathways. Both the challenges associated with the beginning stages of creating Z-degrees and strategies to overcome these will be addressed. The presenters of this session envision Guided Pathway Z-degrees to be able to rapidly take off at their institution and therefore make Lansing Community College a national leader in this area.

What is the status of open education initiatives at Virginia two- and four-year institutions? Is infrastructure in place to support faculty who are interested in course redesign using open educational resources (OER)? Are there common obstacles that impede or prohibit OER adoption?



The State Council of Higher Education in Virginia (SCHEV) wanted to find out more about these and other issues affecting the introduction and growth of open education at member institutions. Consequently, SCHEV's Open Virginia Advisory Committee (OVAC) developed and distributed a survey to members in January 2016. Seventeen institutions were initially contacted, with response data currently being collected and evaluated. Here are some preliminary results.



Interest in OER is pervasive, although the stage of institutional programs varies widely, with the Virginia Community College System serving as a model for 4-year institutions. As the predominant learning management systems used, Blackboard and Canvas allow faculty to share learning materials seamlessly at their institutions. Moreover, instructional design support is readily available to faculty who are integrating OER into their courses.



Nevertheless, the lack of 1) policies addressing OER, 2) demonstrable high-level administrative support, and 3) integration into institutional strategic plans are examples of the greatest challenges to institution-wide, not to mention state-wide, movement toward real growth in open resources to replace expensive learning materials. The detailed findings of the OVAC survey of two- and four-year institutions in Virginia will be presented during this talk, as will legislation affecting open education that has been introduced in the Virginia Assembly. Representatives of two- and four-year institutions will share their perspectives and answer questions.

A key component in many successful community college adoption campaigns has been participating in communities of practice (CoP). Members of the CCCOER community of practice from across the US and Canada will share how participating in and leveraging the community activities supports their design of effective open educational practices and policies at their college.

Panelists:  

• Quill West, Open Education Project Manager, Pierce College District, CCCOER Advisory board president.

• Sue Tasjian, Jody Carson, Northern Essex Community College, co-leaders of the Massachusetts Community College Go Open project.

• Regina Gong, OER Project Manager, Lansing Community College

• Jason Pickavance, Director of Educational Initiatives at Salt Lake Community College

• Alisa Cooper, Glendale Community College Faculty, co-chair of the Maricopa Millions OER project.

Educause’s definitive Communities of Practice Design Guide: A Step-by-Step Guide for Designing & Cultivating Communities of Practice in Higher Education (Cambridge, Kaplan, Suter, 2005) identified 4 key activities that support the identified purposes of a CoP:

• Develop Relationships and Build Trust

• Learn and Develop Practice

• Carry Out Tasks and Projects

• Create New Knowledge

Develop Relationships and Build Trust

CCCOER members build community through participating in an active online discussion forum where new information and activities related to open educational practice and policy are shared.  Members use this forum to get expert advice on finding and adopting OER, motivating faculty, involving students, and many other topics.   Both asynchronous and synchronous online meetings are scheduled monthly to further support interactions.

Learn and Develop Practice

Monthly webinars and advisory meetings feature OER thought leaders from within the community and outside.  These activities keep members tuned into new research findings, OER collaboration opportunities, and open education policy updates. Members are strongly encouraged to share their early project successes during online meetings and get feedback on various approaches. The CoP involves members in selecting specific topics for meetings and the annual member survey provides another vehicle to involve members in developing the focus for the CoP. Volunteering to serve on the executive team gives members experience in helping to build a CoP that reflects the diversity of its members.

All professional development webinars and other online meetings are recorded and provide ongoing artifacts for exchanging new knowledge.  A campus OER toolkit is being revised to reflect new and evolving understanding of open educational policies and practices.

Carry Out Projects and Create New Knowledge

CCCOER panel presentations and workshops are organized at regional and national conferences to provide an opportunity for members to work together in-person, promote their OER adoption successes, and share new knowledge with colleagues throughout higher education.  Panelists will describe how their participation in the CCCOER has informed and strengthened their local OER projects and helped them create and exchange knowledge with newcomers and experienced OER practitioners alike.

CCCOER works with over 250 colleges in 21 states and provinces to promote open educational practices and policies to expand access and to enhance teaching and learning at community colleges.

Last June, Achieving the Dream (ATD) announced the largest initiative of its kind to develop degree programs using high quality open educational resources (OER) at 38 community colleges in 13 states.  The program is designed to help remove financial roadblocks that can derail students’ progress and to spur other changes in teaching and learning and course design that will increase the likelihood of degree and certificate completion.  

Grantee colleges have been busy this summer and fall developing OER courses and planning the delivery of their OER Degree programs with cross-functional teams of stakeholders including faculty, librarians, administrators, and other staff.   Grant partners Lumen Learning, the Community College Consortium for Open Educational Resources (CCCOER), and SRI International are providing technical assistance, community of practice, and research support to grantees

Come and hear from a panel of four college leaders on their early successes, lesson learned, and challenges ahead in rolling out OER Degree programs to students over the next few years. Topics include fostering faculty and administrator engagement, effective professional development, creating awareness among students, measuring outcomes, and creating sustainable policies.

Panelists:

• Clea Andreadis, Vice-Provost, Bunker Hill College, MA

• Mark Johnson, Department Chair, English and Modern Languages, San Jacinto College, TX

• Cynthia Lofaso, Psychology Professor, Central Virginia Community College, VA

• Carlos Lopez, Vice-President of Academic Affairs, Santa Ana College, CA