George Washington University
Washington, DC, United States
Official Website
• @GWTweets
Type: Private 4-Year, Research University
Annual Enrollment: 25,613
Overview
In 2016, GW Libraries and Academic Innovation appointed a team of librarians and education staff to promote the use of open educational resources amongst faculty. Our goal is to reduce the cost of textbooks for GW students using OER when possible, and other alternative texts such as library resources to ultimately improve student success. Our initiative is promoted by the Provost and the Student Association Senate. To encourage the use of Open Textbooks and other OERs our team hosts library workshops for faculty to learn where to find OER and how to implement them in their courses. We also work with the liaison librarians to find more open/affordable materials catered to each subject area.
In fall 2017, the OER Team launched the program Top Textbooks at GW Libraries to further our efforts to impact student success and college affordability. Top Textbooks at GW Libraries acquires up to five copies of required textbooks for a select list of undergraduate, high enrollment courses with expensive textbooks and place them on course reserve for all students to use in accordance with current course reserve practices/loan periods.
Campus Details
Campus Entities Most Active in Efforts Advancing OER:
- Campus Store
- E-Learning/Distance Education
- Library
- Student Government
- Teaching and Learning Center
Library Departments Active in Efforts Advancing OER:
- Collections & Technical Services
- Public Service/Reference
- Subject Liaisons
Academic Subjects With Greatest OER Traction:
- Business and administration
- Chemistry
- Psychology
Mechanisms to Support OER Included in the Following:
- Course/Curriculum Design/Redesign
- Library Services
- Professional Development
OER Programs
WRLC Textbook Affordability Working Group
The Washington Research Library Consortium (WRLC) Textbook Affordability Working Group is made up of 10 members representing each of the institutions in the DC-area library consortia. The goal of this working group is to advocate for open educational resources (OER) and other low/no cost options by promoting their use through our membership in the Open Education Network (OEN), faculty workshops, marketing, LibGuides, and a community of practice.
Program Type:
- Task Force/Committee
Duration: 10/2019 - Present
Program Webpage: https://www.wrlc.org/mission
Scope: Affordable course content, including cost-free course content and OER
Primary OER Strategy: OER Awareness
Secondary OER Strategies: OER Adoption, OER Pedagogy, OER Review/Assessment, OER Research
Unit Housing the Program:
- Library
Program Partners:
- Teaching and Learning Center
- Other
Source of Program Funding:
- Other: WRLC Consortium
Total Program Funding to Date: $ 13,500
Incentives Offered by the Program:
- Professional development
OER Events
Open Education: Access, Affordability,and Academic Success
Open Education Network's virtual OER training workshop on October 1, 2020 was designed to help attendees from each of the institutions in the Washington Research Library Consortium (WRLC) gain expertise in helping faculty understand that open and affordable course materials contribute to equity in education and improve students' academic performance.
Date: Oct. 1, 2020
Event Type:
- Workshop/Professional Development
Event themes:
- Other
Scope: OER (open course content)
Approximate Attendees: 75
Links:
Promotional Material
OER Resources
Teaching Online with Open and Affordable Course Materials
Video promoting OER as a key resource during the switch to virtual learning on campuses in 2020.
Resource Permissions:
CC BY
Resource Citation:
cc-by
Point of Contact
GW OER Team
GW Libraries & Academic Innovation