Title

OER and solving the textbook cost crisis

Document Type

Video

Publication Date

10-7-2015

Abstract

Using and developing impactful and affordable learning material in the digital age: a workshop on the open education resources (OER) movement. Recorded by the Fairfield University Library's Digital Services & Technology Unit in the Multimedia Room at Dimenna-Nyselius Library on October 7, 2015.

Nicole Allen, Director of Open Education, Scholarly Publishing and Academic Resources Coalition (SPARC) opens the workshop by presenting a talk, accompanied by a slide presentation, on her activism and advocacy for policies regarding higher education afforability and her work with the library community to help advance open educational resources as well as open access scholarly publishing. She discusses textbook costs, including its impact on student learning and scholarship; open educational resources, including definitions and ways it is being used and created across the country; and examples of impacts and outcomes at colleges using OER. She closes, suggesting ways the audience can become involved with OER at their institutions. Q & A session follows.

Comments

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons License Attribution 4.0 International License.

Recorded by the Fairfield University Library's Digital Services & Technology Unit in the Multimedia Room at Dimenna-Nyselius Library on October 7, 2015.

Using and Developing Impactful and Affordable Learning Material in the Digital Age: A Workshop on the Open Education Resources (OER) Movement.

Presenter’s Bio

Nicole Allen is the Director of Open Education for SPARC. In this role she leads SPARC's work on Open Educational Resources (OER), focusing on public policy and engaging and supporting the library community on this issue.

Nicole joined SPARC in 2013 already established as a leading figure in the OER movement through her previous role at the Student Public Interest Research Groups. During her seven year tenure, Nicole worked with college students to organize numerous large-scale grassroots campaigns on OER and related issue areas, including a 40-campus, cross-country van tour called the "Textbook Rebellion" and organizing 3,000 professors to sign a commitment to consider adopting open textbooks. Nicole is widely cited in the media for her work, and is considered one of the leading issue experts on college textbook costs. She also currently chairs the Steering Committee of the Open Policy Network.

Nicole graduated from the University of Puget Sound in 2006 with a Bachelors of Arts in Philosophy. A life-long activist, Nicole chose a career in grassroots organizing because of her first hand experience with the power of the student voice. Currently she splits her time between her home in Providence, RI and SPARC's headquarters in Washington, DC.

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