International Journal of Open Educational Resources Table 1 . Why Did You Take this Course ? ( multiple selections allowed ) [ N = 17 ]
Because I became interested in open issues in a scholarly communications course
23.5 % ( 4 )
Became interested in open education from my job 53 % ( 9 ) Heard about OER from listserv discussions 18 % ( 3 ) Needed a one-credit course to graduate 23.5 % ( 4 )
Other ( passion for subject ; heard about it in a webinar ; saw jobs posted for OER librarians )
23.5 % ( 4 )
Several questions sought to obtain a sense of student satisfaction with the course . When asked how effective the course was , on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being “ highly effective ” and 1 being “ not at all effective ”, 15 out 17 respondents chose “ 5 ”. When asked “ Would you recommend this course to another student , on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being “ highly likely ” and 1 being “ not likely at all ”, 16 out of 17 respondents chose “ 5 ”. The official course evaluation also supported student satisfaction with the course , as the average rating across all evaluation factors was 4.3 out of 5 .
One measure of student satisfaction and perceived academic success is their own perception of the course ’ s impact on changing their knowledge of the subject matter . Students were asked to self-identify their level of confidence with the course material both at the start of the course and at the end of the course . Tables 2 and 3 report the results of this question .
Table 2 . Rate Your Level of Confidence Prior to the Course [ N = 17 ]
5 = High Level of Confidence 6 % ( 1 ) 4 12 % ( 2 ) 3 6 % ( 1 ) 2 35 % ( 6 ) 1 = Low Level of Confidence 41 % ( 7 )
With the majority of students reporting low confidence in their initial knowledge of open education , the course presented them with the opportunity to improve and build confidence as aspiring open education librarians . But did it ? According to Table 3 , the vast majority of the responding students , at the end of the course , rated their level of confidence as “ high ”.
Of considerable significance is the shift from 41 % of students indicating “ low confidence ” to absolutely no students reporting low confidence at the end of the course . Every student experienced some increase in their personal level of confidence . In addition to affirming the effectiveness of the course , these results reflect the students ’ own belief that they achieved the course learning outcomes .
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