Open Educational Resources (OER) have been in the news lately, partly because of the rising interest in this trend. Here are a few recent news items, in context:
+ SPARC (The Scholarly Publishing and Academic Resources Coalition ) announces that OER has saved $1 billion dollars for students across the world. This estimate is based upon reports from individual OER programs, across K-12, and higher education.
+ EdSurge notes the increasing role of libraries, as a place to promote, and further integrate OER.
+ A blog post from OpenStax addresses the question of how open textbooks are made, giving a window into the development process.
+ Tangentially related to OER is the question of digital vs print materials, and whether either one has a more positive impact on student learning. The Chronicle of Higher Education reports that there is “no easy answer,” and acknowledges the topic as an ongoing debate. (OER materials can be printed out, but typically they are hosted in a digital environment, and therefore may be seen as a hybrid model.)
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