Intention, Tenacity, and a Bit of Serendipity: How We’ve Grown Open on the Canadian Prairies

Abstract

The University of Saskatchewan has seen the use of OER grow from the first large adoption of an open textbook in 2015 to a large-scale open initiative sweeping the institution. Some of our successes have included saving students $800,000 within 4 years, the creation and adaptation of several open textbooks, the piloting of an OER repository for storing and sharing locally created resources, and the integration of open pedagogy in at least half a dozen courses. As this initiative continues to grow, and brings about a culture shift within the institution, librarians play a vital role in educating and supporting both instructors and students about all aspects of open learning. This session will explore how an OER initiative has grown at the University of Saskatchewan, and how librarians at your institution can move such programs forward. We’ll share high level ideas and examples of how librarians and educational developers have worked at the grass roots level to seek out opportunities, educate others about OER, build partnerships, support champions, and grow the interest level and integration of OER at the University.