Equity through Affordability: Early Findings on the Implementation of Open Access Resources in Graduate Coursework
Location
PARB 127 (First Floor)
Proposal Track
Research Project
Session Format
Presentation
Abstract
Although graduate students constitute only 15% of all students enrolled in higher education, they are responsible for approximately 40% of the total $1.5 trillion U.S. student loan debt (Miller, 2020). Numerous researchers have found that high levels of graduate student borrowing not only restricts career prospects, but it frequently compels students to leave graduate programs early (e.g., Pabian, 2018). Therefore, open educational resources (OERs) have been proposed as one viable initiative to reduce the cost of coursework.
This study presents findings on student satisfaction and potential barriers to effectiveness from a project to implement OERs in six online classes in an Ed.D. higher education program. Quantitative data were derived from a Likert-scale survey with over 60 participants, and qualitative data were derived from interviews with 21 participants. Findings indicate that student satisfaction with OERs was high, with praise for 1) diverse readings which facilitated greater engagement and creativity and 2) public scholarship which introduced contemporary issues related to the program’s commitment to social justice and equity. The study also addresses findings which indicate that accessibility in OER programs may be hindered by students’ need to print lengthy readings and a lack of institutional accessibility to cost-prohibitive scholarly publications.
Keywords
accessibility, equity, higher education, graduate coursework, open access
Professional Bio
Michael Lanford is an Assistant Professor of Higher Education at the University of North Georgia. His research explores the social dimensions of education, with specific attention to equity, globalization, institutional innovation, and organizational culture. In 2022, his first book, Creating a Culture of Mindful Innovation in Higher Education, was published by SUNY Press. Dr. Lanford has published approximately 30 articles and book chapters for publications such as the American Educational Research Journal, Educational Philosophy and Theory, Higher Education, Higher Education: Handbook of Theory and Research, and Qualitative Inquiry. Katherine Rose Adams is the Program Coordinator for and Assistant Professor in the Higher Education Leadership and Practice doctoral program at the University of North Georgia. Katherine teaches coursework on higher education leadership theory, qualitative research, student affairs administration, and law and ethics in higher education. Her research interests are in the areas of boundary spanning, higher education leadership, community engagement theory, university-community partnerships, student homelessness, and qualitative research communication. Katherine is an Associate Editor for the Journal of Community Engagement and Scholarship.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Recommended Citation
Adams, Katherine and Lanford, Michael, "Equity through Affordability: Early Findings on the Implementation of Open Access Resources in Graduate Coursework" (2022). Georgia Educational Research Association Conference. 34.
https://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/gera/2022/2022/34
Equity through Affordability: Early Findings on the Implementation of Open Access Resources in Graduate Coursework
PARB 127 (First Floor)
Although graduate students constitute only 15% of all students enrolled in higher education, they are responsible for approximately 40% of the total $1.5 trillion U.S. student loan debt (Miller, 2020). Numerous researchers have found that high levels of graduate student borrowing not only restricts career prospects, but it frequently compels students to leave graduate programs early (e.g., Pabian, 2018). Therefore, open educational resources (OERs) have been proposed as one viable initiative to reduce the cost of coursework.
This study presents findings on student satisfaction and potential barriers to effectiveness from a project to implement OERs in six online classes in an Ed.D. higher education program. Quantitative data were derived from a Likert-scale survey with over 60 participants, and qualitative data were derived from interviews with 21 participants. Findings indicate that student satisfaction with OERs was high, with praise for 1) diverse readings which facilitated greater engagement and creativity and 2) public scholarship which introduced contemporary issues related to the program’s commitment to social justice and equity. The study also addresses findings which indicate that accessibility in OER programs may be hindered by students’ need to print lengthy readings and a lack of institutional accessibility to cost-prohibitive scholarly publications.
