Internet Learning Volume 6, Number 2, Fall 2017/Winter 2018 | Page 46

Access to Information Doesn’t Have to Come with a Pretty Cover and a Price Tag
great thinkers in the field. And we agree
that, particularly at the graduate level,
there may be books that are crucial for
students to read. However, these generally
tend to be scholarly works with
great historical influence as opposed
to textbooks. Moreover, the argument
for great thinkers may exaggerate the
frequency of a great work’s approach
within courses. Actually, many times
our students in OER classes have more
access to the writings of important
scholars than they would have in classes
using purchased materials. Many
traditional courses rely on the types of
textbooks that only mention important
thinkers in the field and provide a
mere half-page excerpt about them.
Just as our professors did with the copy
store packets from back in the day, we
can still provide chapters from books,
so long as we follow copyright fair use
guidelines.
Workload
The most frequent claim we tend to hear
is that the workload is simply too heavy
for professors to gather their own materials.
This is one that we are particularly
sympathetic to given the increasing
demands on faculty time. There is no
doubt that there is more work involved
in gathering material when compared
to simply using a textbook. The task
of converting required reading lists to
OERs for professors who have relied on
not only textbooks but accompanying
resources, test banks, and PowerPoints
provided by some publishers, can at
first seem overwhelming. However, in
the long run, the transition is beneficial
for both professors and students. Professors
get to shape the material to the
learning needs of their students; and the
process of gathering ensures that we, as
faculty members, stay up-to-date with
the important teachings in the field in a
way that we might not do so if we only
focus on our narrow interests.
Newer Faculty Members
The challenges are, of course, greater
with newer instructors. When we were
doctoral students teaching our first
classes, it was common to be advised to
select one book for students and lecture
from another. That does not work in our
online teaching since the learning platform
is much different than a lecture
hall. However, this guidance really does
not apply to a focus on OERs. Thus,
this process may take more mentoring
and guidance for junior faculty. But,
as more doctoral students and faculty
members come through a technologically-charged
atmosphere of OERs and
rapid access to information, the process
should become simpler over time.
The Bottom Line
For schools and states that have
made the transition to OERs,
the financial savings to students
have been staggering. For example,
Rice University has saved its students
$155 million since 2012, due to its use
of OpenStax, a resource which provides
students free access to peer-reviewed
textbooks; and the University System of
Georgia has “saved their students more
than $16 million through expanding
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