Session attendees will learn how to implement the SMORES framework at their institution, develop best practices for OER creation and implementation, gain a new perspective of implementing OER, learn about common accessibility issues with OER development, understand the importance of academic and support services for OER, and utilizing universal design.
Abstract
The SMORES framework is a student-centered approach for implementing or developing open educational resources (OER). A focus of the framework is to create OER in formats that all students can use. SMORES stands for Students, Materials, Open, Resources, Equal, and Support. Each of these concepts form the basis of the framework which incorporates accessibility, universal design, support services, and campus resources.
Research shows that the digital accessibility of OER is still lacking in many areas, and that many resources and repositories do not conform with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG). Another problem is that while some resources are accessible, they are only offered in one or two modalities which lessens their overall usability. Universal design argues that the more means of representation included in a material, the more successful students will be in utilizing it for learning.
The SMORES framework addresses accessibility by including experts in the areas of universal design, digital accessibility, and student success when creating or distributing OER. While also providing more pathways for students to gain the support and tools necessary to learn from the materials effectively.
Pikes Peak Community College has been using this framework in the implementation of OER to replace publisher materials for several courses. Resources that were only available via inaccessible websites, are transformed into PDFs, ePubs, audiobooks, digital content within a Learning Management System, and other formats. In addition, these resources are provided to areas of need: Accessibility Services for accommodation requests, the Bookstore for physical distribution of materials, eLearning for digital distribution of materials, and support services for tutoring/academic success.
The student-centered approach of the framework, is how that each decision with regards to how OER is developed or implemented is viewed through a student perspective. This includes examples of how the material will be presented to the student, what software will students use to access, use case scenarios, what barriers are present for the student to access or learn from, what modalities are essential, and how to incorporate materials through academic and student support services.
Overall, the framework shifts the idea of creating and implementing OER for student success, by including it in all aspects of the academic experience, and not just focusing on the cost benefits to students.
References
Cronin, C. (2017). Openness and Praxis: Exploring the Use of Open Educational Practices in Higher Education. The International Review Of Research In Open And Distributed Learning, 18(5). doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.19173/irrodl.v18i5.3096
Navarrete, R. & Luján-Mora, S. Univ Access Inf Soc (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10209-017-0529-9
Rose, D.H. & Gravel, J.W. (2010). Universal design for learning. In E. Baker, P. Peterson, & B. McGaw (Eds.). International Encyclopedia of Education, 3rd Ed. Oxford: Elsevier.