Learning Objects: Coming to a
Classroom Near You!
Dahlia Shaewitz, OER STEM Project Director
Amanda Duffy, OER STEM Task Leader
American Institutes for Research
COABE March 18, 2014, 11:00am-12:15
Agenda
• Project Overview & Major Activities
• What is an OER?
• OERs for Enhanced Teaching and Learning
in Adult Ed
• Evaluating OERs
• Managing and Sharing OERs
• What’s Next: More PD Opportunities
2
Introductions
• Your name
• Your interest in STEM and/or OERs
3
OER STEM: Project Goal
Develop new and innovative ways to
improve the teaching of STEM content to
adult education students using open
educational resources (OERs)
Find out more on our project page:
http://lincs.ed.gov/programs/oerstem
4
Major Activities
• Select teachers (User Group members) to
use and evaluate STEM OERs
• Create online professional development
and training materials to expand use of
STEM OERs
• Disseminate project tools and generate
excitement about teaching STEM and using
OERs
• Expand thinking about NETP and Digital
Badges in adult education
5
User Group Members
Find contentspecific OERs
Select OERs
appropriate to
use with adult
learners
Use the OERs in
the classroom
Evaluate OERs
through OER
Commons
Share OERs and
evaluations on
OER Commons
Engage in a
private CoP on
LINCS
6
Reasons to Use OERs
OERs help students and instructors
+
OERs are accessible and convenient
+
OERs enrich learning
OERs increase the capacity for
teaching and learning
STEM topics in adult education
7
WHAT IS AN OER?
8
What is an OER?
“Open educational resources (OER) are
teaching, learning, and research resources
that reside in the public domain or have
been released under an intellectual
property license that permits sharing,
accessing, repurposing—including for
commercial purposes—and collaborating
with others.”
- Page 56, National Educational Technology Plan, 2010
The 4 R’s
Reuse: the right to reuse
content
•
:
Redistribute: the right to
share content
Remix: the right to combine
content to make something new
Revise: the right to modify
content
Resource: Creative Commons licensing & what material is legal to re-use:
wiki.creativecommons.org/Creative_Commons_and_Open_Educational_Resources
10
“I'm using some of the resources in my math
groups and modifying them accordingly. Others
are already prepared for a variety of skill levels.
It took me several attempts searching for OERs
before I felt confident with an evaluation. Now
that I have completed two of them, I am
anxious to continue...I've learned to
automatically look for Creative Commons on
resources before sharing them.”
- User Group I Member
11
IS IT AN OER OR NOT?
12
13
14
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/
15
Terms of Use
Example from PBS Learning Media:
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When in Doubt…Ask!
“When I found the algebra2go.com I asked
about "creative commons" licensing and
they weren't aware of it as an option... so
now I'm going to ask again about the
videos, which are under the "standard"
license. The author also didn't know about
OERcommons.org and was delighted to be
part of it...”
- User Group Member
17
TYPES OF OERS
18
Examples of OERs
19
Types of OERs
Types of OERs Evaluated by UG I & II
Activities and Labs
36
Lecture (Audio/Video/Notes)
26
Lesson Plans
24
Interactive/Simulations
16
Image or Illustration
11
Teaching and Learning Strategies
11
Reading
10
Units of Study/Full Course/Textbook
8
Assessment
8
Homework/Assignment
7
Games
Case Study
4
2
20
Example 1
21
www.oercommons.org/courses/heredity-mix-n-match/view
Example 2
22
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tr75SIxNf80
“I am using video OERs to supplement my
classroom instruction. Most of the time I
will introduce a concept through hands-on
activities and exploration. We then discuss
what we have discovered. I will then use an
OER to show students what others have
thought or discovered about the concept. I
also use lesson plan OERs. I usually modify
them slightly for each class.”
- User Group Member
23
SEARCHING FOR AND SELECTING OERS
24
Tips for OER Searches
Define Key Words
Use query operators
• For example: “quotes” to search for an
exact phrase; A dash ( - ) to exclude a
word or a site; A plus ( + ) to add a word
or site
Use Advanced Searches
• Advanced searches narrow options by
reading level, language, file type and
usage type
Searching for OERs: Example
26
Searching for OERs: Example
(cont’d.)
27
Searching for OERs: Example
(cont’d.)
28
How to Select the Right OER?
Think about lesson objective
Identify skills students need
Fit the OER within lesson
Try the OER
Evaluate its effectiveness
Remember! Technology does not replace instruction,
but it can enhance teaching and learning.
Using OERs for Teaching and
Learning
• OERs are tools to aid teaching
• Students can use OERs for learning in
class and on their own
• Teachers report that it can be time
consuming up front to plan with the OER,
but it saves time later
“If one of my learners has trouble grasping a
concept or skill after our activities and
discussion, I may refer them to an OER
... The students really appreciate the ability
to pause and replay [the videos] as many
times as necessary. The students become
much more engaged and
empowered. They feel they have more
control over their learning process.”
- User Group Member
31
EVALUATING OERS
32
“Knowing and using the rubrics to evaluate
the OER resources have advanced my
awareness to discover and use more
effective resources. I am searching with
more scrutiny, which is resulting in better
resources.”
- User Group Member
Resource: Achieve Rubrics and tutorials
http://www.achieve.org/oer-rubrics
33
Achieve Rubrics
• Developed for evaluating “the quality of
instructional resources”
• Include eight rubrics:
• I. Degree of Alignment to Standards
• II. Quality of Explanation of the Subject Matter
• III. Utility of Materials Designed to Support Teaching
• IV. Quality of Assessments
• V. Quality of Technological Interactivity
• VI. Quality of Instructional and Practice Exercises
• VII. Opportunities for Deeper Learning
• VIII. Assurance of Accessibility
34
OER Commons Home Page
35
Tagging OERs as Adult
Education
36
Evaluate OERs
37
Training on Rubrics
38
MANAGING AND SHARING OERS
39
How to Manage and Share
OERs?
• How can will you manage the large number
of possible OERs to use?
• Identify online sharing sites and tools that
are free and shareable with others, for
example:
• Online storage sites, e.g., Dropbox
• Online sharing sites, e.g., Delicious, Diigo, etc.
• Online collaborative groups, e.g. OER
Commons
40
Online Storage Site: Dropbox
41
Online Sharing Site: Delicious
42
Online Collaboration Group:
OER Commons
43
WHAT’S NEXT: MORE PROFESSIONAL
DEVELOPMENT OPPORTUNITIES
44
Professional Development
Courses on STEM OERs
• Open your
classroom
with OERs
• Courselet, a
Lesson
Builder
• Open Science
– Open
Resources
Course 1:
Self Paced
Course 2:
Facilitated
Course 4:
Self Paced
Course 3:
Facilitated
• Open MathOpen Resources
45
More Opportunities with OERs
•
•
•
•
LINCS Discussion about STEM OERs
OER Challenge – coming soon!
Training of Trainers (on the PD courses)
OER STEM project page on LINCS:
http://lincs.ed.gov/programs/oerstem
46
Last Words from User Groups
“My classroom…is a
more fresh and
relevant place to
learn with these new
OER gems!”
“I have also shared
the OER commons
site with my
colleagues and will
be sharing the site
with my audience at
the COABE
conference this
month.”
- User Group Member
- User Group Member
47
Questions?
48
OER STEM Project
• Learn more about the Open Education Resources
to Support Adult STEM Teaching and Learning
project at: http://lincs.ed.gov/programs/oerstem
• Contact us at OERSTEM@air.org
• Learn more about the American Institutes for
Research (AIR) at: www.air.org