M.O.S.T. OER Workshop Series 

• Online friendly. Almost all OER is digital and designed to be accessed via technology rather than on paper. Much OER comes in a format that is compatible with the most commonly used learning management systems.(1)
• Adaptable. In contrast to traditional textbooks, which are locked by copyright, OER can be customized by instructors as they adapt their courses to remote instruction.  
• Accessible forever. Given the economic impact and potentially long duration of COVID-19, students are more likely than ever to take extended periods to complete their degree paths. Being able to reference materials from prerequisite courses months or years later will help them persist. Unlike commercial access codes that expire at the end of a semester, students can retain OER permanently. 
• A good investment. Budgets are tight right now for both students and institutions. OER adoption is one of the few interventions that can both save students money and generate additional revenue for institutions. Faculty use of OER has saved college students nearly one billion dollars in textbook costs in the U.S. and Canada as of 2018.(2) New research shows that there is also a positive financial return on investment for institutions that adopt OER, as students who save money on texts often take additional credits in a given semester.(3)

• M.O.S.T. Commons - M.O.S.T. Commons is a collaborative, online space designed to support the sharing and creation of Open Educational Resources (OER). Through M.O.S.T. Commons, you will have the opportunity to access openly licensed content and collaborate with faculty within your institution and across Maryland. The site also provides authoring tools to create your own OER.
• M.O.S.T. Website - The M.O.S.T. website includes links to help you discover, adapt, and create OER. There is also a section that points to research on what we know about OER and its effectiveness. If you’re brand-new to OER, you can start with this page, “Why OER?”.
• In Spring 2021 we will also announce our next round of M.O.S.T. OER Grants to support institutions’ efforts to increase access, affordability, and achievement for students through the incorporation of OER into teaching practices. Join our mailing list (below) to be notified when that opportunity is posted. 

Dear Colleague,

I thought you might be interested in this webinar sponsored by MarylandOnline which will take place next Tuesday, March 31st. Please see the description and registration information below.

M.O.S.T. Commons: A Resource to Support the Shift to Remote Teaching

• Mindy Boland (Director, OER Services, ISKME/ OER Commons);
• Colleen McKnight (Director of Library Services, Frederick Community College, M.O.S.T. Commons Library Fellow)
• Moderator: Melissa Goldberg (Consultant, edBridge Partners)

The Coronavirus pandemic continues to cause major disruptions for Maryland’s communities, institutions, faculty, and students. We recognize the challenges of preparing programs and courses for remote delivery and are encouraging faculty and staff to consider the Maryland Open Source Textbook (M.O.S.T.) Commons as a resource for locating openly licensed educational resources to support learning.

During this webinar, presenters will discuss how M.O.S.T. Commons can support institutions and faculty in finding high-quality digital materials; how digital rights and responsibilities change when remote teaching; how colleges and systems in other states are using OER to address their transition to remote teaching; and ways the M.O.S.T. team can support your efforts.

There will be plenty of time to answer your questions and address your concerns. 

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER (https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/CZF29Y6)

The M.O.S.T. initiative is here to support your efforts to ensure academic continuity and the well-being of your students during this stressful time.  Please let us know if there is something we can do to help at most@usmd.edu.  

For additional resources related to remote teaching from across the USM and beyond, please visit https://www.usmd.edu/cai/remote-teaching-usm


MJ

Using Open Educational Resources (OER) is not just about inexpensive textbook alternatives, it is about advancing student retention, grades, and graduation rates. Given UMBC’s Mission and Vision to “advance knowledge, economic prosperity, and social justice,” OER is a movement well situated to do just that.

With the OER movement declared by EDUCAUSE as a key strategic priority in 2019, and now one in ten faculty nationally reported as using OER, there is an increase in quality OER textbooks and course materials available to review and adopt.

In the recent Student Textbook and Course Materials Survey in Florida, researchers found that students used a variety of cost saving methods to avoid paying the full price of course material costs, such as renting copies for the semester and sharing with a classmate. When students were asked about the academic impact of textbook costs, 64.2% reported not purchasing the required course materials, 42.7% enrolled in fewer courses, 35.6% “earned a poor grade because they could not afford to buy the textbook,” and 22.9% dropped a course due to textbook cost (Florida Virtual Campus, 2019, pp. 13-14).

While lowering course material costs is certainly a goal of the OER movement, the greater purpose is to ensure student academic success. Researchers at the University of Georgia (Colvard, et. al. 2018) who examined student performance from 2010 to 2016 in eight undergraduate courses with both OER course sections and non-OER course sections found that student grades in the OER sections increased for all student populations considered (full-time, part-time, white, non-white, and Pell-grant recipients). At the same time, the rate of students who received grades of D, F, or W (Withdrawal), decreased for part-time, white, non-white, and Pell-grant recipients in the OER sections. It is significant to note that traditionally underserved student populations (non-white, part-time and Pell-grant recipients) showed the greatest increases in grades and decreases in DFW with the OER adoption. The findings indicate that “OER is an equity strategy for higher education: providing all students with access to course materials on the first day of class serves to level the academic playing field in course settings” (Colvard, et. al., 2018, p. 273).

• Want to learn more about OER? Feel free to check out the OER online guide: lib.guides.umbc.edu/OER

• Interested in OER training workshops or in joining an OER interest group on campus?  Please indicate on the OER interest google form: tinyurl.com/UMBC-OER

Erin Durham, MA, MM, MLIS

Reference & Instruction Faculty Librarian

410-455-3592 | edurham@umbc.edu

The Maryland Open Source Textbook (M.O.S.T.) Initiative is pleased to announce a Request for Proposals for the 2020 OER Grant Program. For 2020, M.O.S.T. is seeking proposals for two grant programs. Learn more below. 

Faculty OER Mini-Grant Program
The Faculty OER Mini-Grant Program supports faculty efforts to increase access, affordability, and achievement for students at Maryland’s 2-year and 4-year public higher education institutions through the incorporation of open educational resources (OER) into teaching practice.

The 2020 M.O.S.T. faculty mini-grants will provide recipients with unique opportunities to engage in communities of practice related to teaching with OER, creation of OER in high-need areas, and evaluation of OER use in relation to student success. 

Available grants for 2020:

• Adopt/Adapt OER ($1,000 grant + Participation in the M.O.S.T. Teaching Fellows Program);
• Create OER ($2,000 grant + Participation in the M.O.S.T. Textbook Success Fellowship Program); and
• Evaluate OER ($3,000 grant + Dedicated Coaching)

Institutional OER Grant Program
The M.O.S.T. initiative is also seeking proposals for a new Institutional OER Grant Program, which supports strategic institutional efforts to increase access, affordability, and achievement for students at Maryland’s 2-year and 4-year public higher education institutions through more systemic incorporation of open educational resources (OER) into teaching practice. 

For 2020, two institutions will be awarded $20,000 grants to support significant advances in OER adoption, scaling, and sustainability in support of student success. In addition, grantees will receive strategic planning and implementation support for their projects from M.O.S.T., as needed, in the form of consultations and regular check-ins. 

Institutions applying for these grants should be able to articulate a vision for how OER will help them achieve strategic goals and explain how the campus will nurture and sustain this next-level work after the funding period ends.

Access and Review Request for Proposals

All proposals must be submitted by 11:59 p.m. ET on Friday, February 28, 2020.  

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Informational Webinar
Join us on Thursday, January 23, 2020 from 12:00 p.m. - 1:00 p.m. ET for an Informational Webinar to learn more about the grant requirements and expectations for successful grants. We will also answer any questions about the grants at that time. Register for the Informational Webinar

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Please feel free to share this information with interested faculty and staff. If you have any questions, please reach out to us at most@usmd.edu. 

Thank you for your support in increasing access, affordability, and achievement for all Maryland higher education students through open educational resources (OER).
 

Join us on Tuesday, October 8, 2019 from 1:00 - 2:00 p.m. for a webinar jointly hosted by the Maryland Open Source Textbook  (M.O.S.T) Initiative and MarylandOnline, entitled Navigating the OER Provider Landscape.

In this webinar, the presenters will:

• define open and the affordances of open;
• describe the overall landscape and marketplace of OER providers;
• describe the role of librarians and library materials; and 
• provide a brief overview of how new technology around teaching intersects and may influence the market going forward.

Presenters:

Registration

The deadline to submit a proposal for the Maryland Open Source Textbook (M.O.S.T.) initiative 2019 High-impact OER Mini-Grant Program has been extended by one week to Friday, March 22, 2019.  Learn more about the Mini-Grant Program below, review the planning document and application questions, and submit a proposal through the online application.

M.O.S.T. is pleased to announce the call for proposals for the 2019 High-impact OER Mini-Grant Program to strategically support Maryland public higher education institutions’ efforts to increase access, affordability, and achievement for students through the incorporation of open educational resources (OER) into teaching practice.  This year, the Mini-Grant Program will support projects in the following categories:

• Adopt/Adapt OER ($500 - $1,500): Targets OER adoption in a high enrollment course for which high-quality OER content already exists.
• Scale OER ($1,500 - $2,500): Targets projects with a vision, plan, and commitment to develop an OER pathway.
• NEW for 2019! Create OER ($1,500 - $2,500): Targets OER creation in a high-need discipline/meta-discipline to fill gaps in existing OER content.

Watch a recording of the informational webinar and learn more about the program and previous recipients here.
 
Please share this information with interested faculty and staff.  If you have any questions, please reach out to us at MOST@usmd.edu.

Thank you for your support in advancing OER adoption across your institution and across the state.