Need some help here! Please comment or make suggestions via Hypothes.is.
I’m planning on surveying the Bemidji State faculty this fall about OER. The idea is both to begin raising awareness about the issue, and to assess the current state of people’s thinking on the subject. I might return to these questions after a couple of semesters pass, so in that sense it’s somewhat of a pre-test. I’m looking for feedback on the questions and suggestions of other questions I haven’t thought of.
Many of these are yes/no questions. Others are multiple choice, with an html text box at the end so faculty can write in answers I may not have considered:
Have you read an OER text?
Have you considered using an OER text in your course?
If yes, what is the most compelling reason?
- Reducing cost to students
- Ease of adoption
- Flexibility and easy customization
- Quality of the text
- (text box) Is there another reason you’re considering an OER?
If no, what is the most compelling concern?
- Not enough time to make a change
- Outside pressure to adopt OER is a turn-off
- Questionable quality of texts
- Have not found an appropriate text for my course
- (text box) Is there another reason you’ve ruled out an OER?
How frequently do you revise your course and adopt a new textbook?
How long have you been using the current textbook?
Do you know how much the textbook costs?
Has the textbook price changed significantly in the last couple of years?
Do all your students buy the textbook?
Do all your students who buy your textbook have it on the first day of class?
Does the content in your textbook vary significantly from the content of your lectures?
- Identical to lecture content
- Supplement to lecture content
- Source of review, homework, quiz practice, etc.
Do you use the latest edition of the textbook and switch to it as soon as a new edition is available?
If so, why?
- Significant updates in a rapidly-changing field
- Students like to be using the newest edition
- Bookstore has trouble getting older edition
- (text box) Other reason
Did you choose the textbook?
- Yes, decision was mine alone
- Partly, decided along with others teaching this course
- No, my department chose the textbook
- No, this is the standard text in the field and everyone uses it
- (text box) Other
Do you adapt the textbook content into lectures, assessments, discussion prompts?
Do you use a print or an electronic version of the textbook?
Do you use ancillary materials provided by a publisher (assessments, homework)
- Yes, as part of a package purchased with the textbook
- Yes, but as a separate purchase from another provider
- No, I make my own and put them in D2L
- No, I don’t use electronic assessments or homework
Are there any other issues (pro or con) with OER texts you would like to mention?
MakingHistory.blog 