Equity through Affordability: The Implementation of Open Access Resources in Graduate Coursework
Location
Ballroom
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. However, when using textbooks in doctoral education, a limitation is not only cost, but also the lack of diverse perspectives provided by single learning materials. Through two rounds of Affordable Learning Materials Grants, which promotes affordability in classroom materials, our research will present findings on revised course materials in 12 doctoral courses to reduce costs and increase the diversity of perspectives covered in the materials. Results showed that there was a large increase in the number of author perspectives and sources represented in courses when instructors transitioned from textbooks. Both qualitative and quantitate findings from student perspectives on the new material will be provided, as well as faculty strategies for implementing OER course transitions.
Keywords
accessibility, equity, higher education, graduate coursework, open access
Professional Bio
Katherine Rose Adams is the Program Coordinator for and Associate 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; Long, Kelly; and McElveen, Micheal, "Equity through Affordability: The Implementation of Open Access Resources in Graduate Coursework" (2024). Georgia Educational Research Association Conference. 59.
https://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/gera/2024/2024/59
Equity through Affordability: The Implementation of Open Access Resources in Graduate Coursework
Ballroom
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. However, when using textbooks in doctoral education, a limitation is not only cost, but also the lack of diverse perspectives provided by single learning materials. Through two rounds of Affordable Learning Materials Grants, which promotes affordability in classroom materials, our research will present findings on revised course materials in 12 doctoral courses to reduce costs and increase the diversity of perspectives covered in the materials. Results showed that there was a large increase in the number of author perspectives and sources represented in courses when instructors transitioned from textbooks. Both qualitative and quantitate findings from student perspectives on the new material will be provided, as well as faculty strategies for implementing OER course transitions.
