Open Education 2017

Unlike individual OER courses, which can be developed independently by faculty, developing an OER degree program requires sustained institutional involvement and investment in course development and infrastructure. Launching an OER Degree program requires a coordinated planning process between academic departments and college administrative units, the modification of institutional systems to identify OER course sections and implement course fees, and the enlistment of non-instructional support and advising staff.

Achieving the Dream, a national, nonprofit organization that champions and supports evidence-based institutional improvement, launched the OER Degree Initiative to investigate, among other things, how community colleges successfully roll-out and sustain OER degree programs. Through this ambitious initiative, 38 community colleges across the country are creating and piloting fully OER-based degree programs and ATD research partners SRI International and rpkGROUP are evaluating the student outcomes, project costs, and effective implementation strategies of these new OER degree programs.

During this session you will learn about the early findings of the OER Degree Initiative evaluation, with a particular focus on what we have learned about effective OER degree implementation.