This document discusses the advantages and disadvantages of using Open Educational Resources (OER) in college courses. The advantages include students having access to a variety of learning materials and perspectives, as well as free resources that enable students to start classes without delay. OER also allows instructors to customize materials to meet student needs. However, finding and curating quality OER is very time consuming for instructors. Institutions must support faculty time and effort for OER development and ensure consistency in learning outcomes across course sections using different materials. Institutions may also need to host OER content themselves to prevent link rot from outdated webpages.

1. Want to use Open Educational
Resources? Let’s Talk!
By Chris Wilkins
Clark College
Vancouver, WA

2. Advantages
 Students get a variety of ‘voices’; writing styles, opinions,
in their learning.
o (as long as their isn’t so many that it is distracting.)
 Free resources enable students to get started in their
class right away. No waiting for FinAid or pay checks.
 If it is available in a format I can manipulate, I can
enhance it to meet my students’ needs and learning
styles.
 As an institution, we are letting students know that their
financial health is important to us. We value their hard
work in class and what it takes to pay for the class.
 (How many hours does a student have to work to pay for a $150 dollar book for my
class? 10, 15? I would rather they spend that time learning.)

3. Disadvantages
 It is very time consuming to create your own content or to do
searches for good content and pull those together into
something that works for your class.
 There has to be support from the institution itself to embrace
this practice so that faculty can have the time to do this,
individually or as a department.
 Departments have to be very clear about their learning
outcomes and make sure that there is uniformity between
sections of the same class so that no matter what sources are
being used, students are learning what we say they are.
 Link rot. Webpages disappear or are moved all the time.
Institutions need to be ready to house the OER content if they
want to make sure students have access to it.

4. Summary
This is a HUGH topic with many parts but I’m happy to be in the
middle of this exciting time. I’m hoping my institution starts this
conversation soon.
Psst…Did you hear that Clark
College is making OER an
institute wide effort!