5 Assessing your OER

OpenHawks Assessment Guidelines

After your OER project has been completed and used for at least one semester, you will need to conduct an assessment of the resource’s impact and effectiveness. The methods of assessment are up to you, but you will need to address the following questions:

1. Are students learning what they need to be successful in the course and beyond?
2. Did the OER adequately support the course’s curriculum?
3. Did the OER impact the teaching of the course? If so, how?
4. What were students’ impressions of the OER?
5. What were instructors’ impressions of the OER?
6. What changes need to be made to make this OER mores successful going forward?

Information gathering for these questions can be approached in different ways, depending on factors such as available data, type of course, nature of the OER project, disciplinary norms, preferences, etc. Some teams may ask students and instructors directly for feedback on the OER. Others may wish to look closely at student performance data.

We will meet with each project team after the OER has been used for at least one semester to discuss the questions above. We will schedule them well in advance so that you have time to prepare. These meetings will serve two purposes: to gather information about the success of individual projects, and to gather information about the OpenHawks program itself. You may want to write notes, prepare a report, or provide other documentation to support your assessment, but this is not required.

Please also be prepared to provide feedback on the OpenHawks pilot itself. Some questions you may consider: Did you receive adequate support to complete your OER project? Was the cohort beneficial as you worked on your projects? Was the grant amount enough to cover your financial needs for the project?

Sample Assessment Questions for Students

1. Do you feel that the open textbook used in this course supported your learning? Why or why not?
2. How well did the open textbook align with what was taught in the course?
3. How did the open textbook compare to more traditional textbooks that you have used in other courses?
4. How easy or difficult was it to access and navigate the open textbook?
5. What changes need to be made to make this OER mores successful going forward?
6. Any additional comments?