Survey finds 75% of faculty unaware of OER options
An American nation-wide survey of 2,000 faculty members by Babson Survey Group and the University of California-San Francisco found that 75% of teaching faculty are unaware of open education resources (OER). According to eCampus News, faculty and administrator respondents called for a single OER clearinghouse to make discovery of open educational resources faster and easier. The report finds that "Colleges and universities would do well to band together and create a clearinghouse or create internal committees to investigate use of the free resources. Once materials are selected, it would save money for the school and for students."
Open Educational Resources Recent Presentations OLC Innovate 2023 - Featured Presentation Session Title:

Presentation Time: April 21st, 11:45 AM to 12:30 PM CT

How and why are specific courseware materials chosen to be used? The curricula adoption process varies across institutions and departments. This presentation uses large-scale national survey data to look at the curricula adoption process and examine differences for OER vs. non-OER classrooms, by course level, and institution type.

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OLC Innovate 2023 Session Title:

Presentation Time: Thursday, April 20th, 9:30 AM to 10:15 AM CT

The use of digital materials in higher education classrooms is on the rise. Join us for a closer look at this transition from physical, print materials to a digital-first future over the last decade. We’ll discuss how we got here, and what this might mean for the future of education.

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Session Title: Behind The Curtain For The Curricula Adoption Processes In OER And Non-OER Classrooms Presentation Time: April 21st, 11:45 AM to 12:30 PM CTHow and why are specific courseware materials chosen to be used? The curricula adoption process varies across institutions and departments. This presentation uses large-scale national survey data to look at the curricula adoption process and examine differences for OER vs. non-OER classrooms, by course level, and institution type.Session Title: Post-Pandemic Trends In U.S. Higher Education Digital And OER Textbook Adoptions Presentation Time: Thursday, April 20th, 9:30 AM to 10:15 AM CTThe use of digital materials in higher education classrooms is on the rise. Join us for a closer look at this transition from physical, print materials to a digital-first future over the last decade. We’ll discuss how we got here, and what this might mean for the future of education.

A Year Apart: Adapting Curricula for a Pandemic, Educational Resources in U.S. K-12 Education, 2021 Report Infographic: A Year Apart: Adapting Curricula for a Pandemic Infographic



A Year Apart: Adapting Curricula for a Pandemic is one of a series of annual surveys of K-12 teachers and administrators in the U.S. This year's report found that the sudden shift to remote instruction caused by the COVID-19 pandemic spurred significant and potentially lasting changes to the landscape of instructional materials. The majority of teachers were forced to make moderate or considerable curricula changes as they made the switch to remote instruction. Additionally, the results suggest that these changes, and increased adoption of digital tools in the classroom, are here to stay.



Key findings include: 74% of teachers reported that they were teaching remotely or using some combination of remote and in-person instruction; 58% of respondents reported having no prior online teaching experience.

The new curriculum materials were acquired from commercial sources (33%) or were primarily developed by teachers (25%). Open-source curricula were used by 37% of districts for supplementary materials, and 97% of teachers used some form of video instruction.

Teachers with prior online experience had greater awareness of open educational resources (OER) and licensing types; they were 14% more aware of Creative Commons and public domain, and 9% more aware or likely to have heard of OER. Key findings include: The study was conducted by Bay View Analytics in partnership with Online Learning Consortium and funded by a grant from The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation. It was based on representative sample of 2,168 K-12 teachers and administrators in U.S. school districts in March 2021.

Digital Texts in the Time of COVID: Educational Resources in U.S. Higher Education, 2020 The Fall 2020 academic term saw a dramatic shift in the proportion of higher education faculty teaching online, driving a transition of existing courses and educational materials into digital formats, according to a survey of faculty conducted by Bay View Analytics. Survey results also show that while the level of awareness of open educational resources (OER) grew for the fifth straight year, OER adoption rates remained stable.



The study, Digital Texts in the Time of COVID: Educational Resources in U.S. Higher Education, 2020, was conducted by Bay View Analytics and supported by a grant from The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation. The results reflect responses from over 3,200 faculty and department chairpersons. The report shows improvements in faculty satisfaction with OER textbooks and an increased reliance on digital materials to meet the demands of online instruction. Faculty who have adopted OER rate their quality slightly superior to that of commercial alternatives.

The level of adoption of OER as required course material did not increase, marking the first time that growth in awareness was not coupled with growth in adoption. The adoption of OER as supplemental materials continued its year-over-year growth, however.

A majority of faculty modified their courses for the fall term, with 79% reporting these changes were driven by pandemic-related issues.

As was true last year, faculty who are aware of institutional or system-level OER initiatives were three to four times as likely to adopt OER as those who were not aware.

OER plays a more prominent role at minority-serving institutions than at other types of higher education institutions. Faculty at these institutions are more likely to have adopted OER materials, both for required and supplemental materials, than faculty at other types of institutions.

The Impact of OER Initiatives on Faculty Selection of Classroom Materials The adoption of open educational resources (OER) is on the rise, driven in part by increasing awareness of OER. But while faculty and institutions have shown increasing awareness and acceptance of OER, many remain unfamiliar with what they are, or how to utilize them. Faculty who are aware of one or more OER initiatives are much more likely to be adopters of OER. This holds true for both faculty teaching introductory-level courses, and the general population of faculty.

When implemented at the institutional level, OER initiatives result in a measurable rise in the number of faculty who are aware of OER.

Faculty who are aware of OER are much more likely to adopt OER as required course materials; those who have yet to adopt OER are much more likely to do so in the future.

The impact of awareness of OER initiatives on adoption remains consistent across types of institutions (two- and four-year), the level of course being taught, and across regional compacts in the U.S. Full Report PDF: Full Report PDF: The Impact of OER Initiatives on Faculty Selection of Classroom Materials (pdf)