The document discusses how Skills@Library at the University of Leeds uses open educational resources (OERs) to support student academic skills development and embed those skills in the curriculum. It provides examples of online tutorials and teaching materials created by Skills@Library that are openly available for both students and staff to use. Feedback shows that OERs help students improve their skills and can help staff integrate skills teaching into their modules by reusing or adapting existing resources. The future plans outlined aim to make more resources openly reusable by moving content to the university's open repository and creating short video demonstrations.

2. Skills@Library supports
student academic skills
development
Leeds Uni:
9 Faculties
7,000 staff
30,000
students
The Leeds
Curriculum
embeds core
skills and
research based
learning
Academic
Skills Strategy
Embedding
skills in the
curriculum
Blended
learning
approach
Leeds for Life
Employability
strategy

3. Finding and
evaluating
information
Critical
thinking
Reading and
note-taking
Academic
writing
Referencing
& academic
integrity
Presentation
Skills
Preparing for
examinations
Maths
Skills@Library Academic Skills

4. Working with staff
to embed skills in
the curriculum
Design & teach
skills sessions
with academics
Enabling students
to develop their
own skills
workshops one to one
support
online
resources
Us going to them Them coming to us

5. Working with
staff to embed
skills in the
curriculum
Provide ONLINE
options for
embedded skills
sessions
SHARE teaching
materials for
others to use
Enabling
students to
develop their
own skills
workshops
one to
one
support
online
resources
Them coming to us
Us going to them

6. Today’s session
• highlights the role of OERs in supporting these
two aims
SHARE teaching
materials for
others to use
Provide ONLINE
options for
embedded
skills sessions

7. Sharing our teaching materials
Skills@Library
Lecturer webpages
Complete workshops –
powerpoints, lesson plans,
activities
A collection of
academic skills
teaching materials
Individual activities – face to
face or online
All freely available to use or adapt as needed

8. Lecturer Webpages: example of use

15. Explore
• Are there any new areas you want to teach in
the future or sessions you want to re-design?
• Could you use or reuse this sort of materials?
http://library.leeds.ac.uk/skills-lecturers

16. Promoting blended learning
Provide and use
ONLINE options for
embedded skills
sessions

17. Leeds Institutional OER Policy
“the University
encourages staff and
students to use, create
and publish OERs to
enhance the quality of
the student experience,
provided that resources
used are fit-for-purpose
and relevant”
http://ses.leeds.ac.uk/download/96/open_educational_resources

18. Policy outline
1. Staff are encouraged to use OER in student
education.
2. Staff are encouraged to produce and release OER
into the community.
3. Recommends use of Creative Commons licences.
4. Staff should ensure all materials are copyright
compliant.
5. Recommends use of JORUM.
6. Students can be consumers and producers of OER.

19. Leeds JORUM

20. Leeds JORUM
http://leeds.jorum.ac.uk/

26. How can Online OERs help with Embedded Skills Development?
Staff signpost
students by
embedding
tutorials in VLE
module areas
Students can
use tutorials
prior to or as a
follow-up to
face-to-face
teaching
Library staff can
focus face-to-
face teaching
time on trickier
skills / concepts

27. Promoting
OERs to
academic staff:
VLE front page
flyer

28. https://www.leeds.ac.uk/vle/staff/build/skills/

29. Academic Staff Feedback
“Excellent, lots of good ideas/materials to support development of
research skills…Can see ways this material can be integrated into
existing modules through level 1 – 2.”
“I am amazed at the resources that are available to be used for
teaching and supporting students...I will definitely use materials
for referencing and writing skills, especially the face-to-face ones.”
“There is a really good range of resources available that could be
useful for lecturers looking for ideas in how to get started in
teaching a topic. Potentially saving time in developing their own
resources.”

30. Student Feedback
Undergraduate and taught postgraduate students were asked to try a
tutorial (outside of a teaching session):
• 98% said tutorials were easy to navigate
• 88% said the level was about right
• 79% said that it improved their understanding greatly or quite a lot
• 92% would recommend the tutorial to a friend
“Easy to use and vital to
completing assignments”
“I found it helpful in gaining a
further understanding in the
subject area”
“It is easy to understand and
apply to your own work”
“i have it bookmarked on my
laptop so i can keep referring
back to it.”
“Useful if you don't know much
about it, too basic if you do though.”

31. Discuss
• Are there e-learning resources in JORUM you
could reuse? Have you tried to already?
• What are the barriers and benefits to doing
this?
http://library.leeds.ac.uk/skills-online-tutorials

32. Future Plans
• Move Lecturer webpage content to JORUM
• Desktop capture for short videos and demos (may replace full tutorials?)

33. So that we
reach more
students
By making
e-resources
easily
reused
By sharing
teaching
resources
widely
To embed
academic
skills in the
curriculum
OERs support Skills@Library’s work
with academic staff

34. Questions or Comments?
Skills@Library
http://library.leeds.ac.uk/skills
h.e.howard@leeds.ac.uk
@helhoward