oer and stem short term fellows residential course april 2011 steve swithenby
DESCRIPTION
Presentation given by Steve Swithenby at the SCORE Short-term Fellowship Week April 2011TRANSCRIPT
OERs in STEM subjects
Stephen Swithenby
April 12 2011
Agenda
• OER challenges in STEM
• OER opportunities in STEM
• Your challenges and opportunities
• Discussion
What’s the problem?
Jorum Deposits
0
500
1000
1500
2000
2500
3000
3500
4000
4500
A, B &
P
Biol S
ci
Bus &
Adm
in
A & D
es
East l
ang
etc Ed
Eng
Eur L
7L
Hist &
Ph
Law
Linguis
tics e
tc
Mas
s Com
ms
Mat
hs &
Com
p
Med
& D
ent
Phys
Sci
Soc S
t
S Allie
d to
MTec
h
Vet S
ci
What’s the problem?
Jorum Deposits
0
500
1000
1500
2000
2500
3000
3500
4000
4500
A, B &
P
Biol S
ci
Bus &
Adm
in
A & D
es
East l
ang
etc Ed
Eng
Eur L
7L
Hist &
Ph
Law
Linguis
tics e
tc
Mas
s Com
ms
Mat
hs &
Com
p
Med
& D
ent
Phys
Sci
Soc S
t
S Allie
d to
MTec
h
Vet S
ci
E-learning issues in STEM
Mathematical notation
Complex diagrams
Interoperability - Online ‘conversations’
Laboratory practice
Field practice
Studio practice
Professional body prescriptiveness (e.g. curriculum, ftf)
Are these Open Educational Resource issues?
E-learning of maths/diagrams Chalk and pencil – culture/belief
Equation editor
Mathtype
Latex (or in embedded html form)
<a href="http://www.codecogs.com/eqnedit.php?latex=\oint \vec{F} \cdot d\vec{s}=0" target="_blank"><img src="http://latex.codecogs.com/gif.latex?\oint \vec{F} \cdot d\vec{s}=0" title="\oint \vec{F} \cdot d\vec{s}=0" /></a>
E-learning of maths/diagrams Intrinsic part of the language of STEM
Incorporation of maths and diagrams in e-assessment
Open Mark
Maths/diagrams and OERS
Transmission of prepared resources possible
Mathcentre
However,
Significant cost of production.
Authorial competence
Issues of interoperability – VLEs, assessment platforms
Interactivity
E-learning and STEM practice
Labs, field work, studio are major requirements in STEM qualifications – upward of 20%-40%
Very expensive to develop and maintain.
Authenticity – the mystique of the White Coat
Professional Body requirements
Lab based capacity constraints in LDCs.
What is a STEM practice OER
OERs for STEM practice
Standard kits and experiments (sensor kits/pre-packaged expts.
Simulations
Interactive experiments
Remotely controllable laboratories
Design community
Authenticity
Cost
OERs for STEM practice
Standard kits and experiments (sensor kits/pre-packaged expts.
Simulations
Interactive experiments
Remotely controllable laboratories
Virtual field trips
Design community
Authenticity
Cost
Opportunities in STEM
Demand for difficult-to-prepare resources
Moodle as a shared open source platform
Web services (assessment, labs etc)
Interactive OERS in STEM
Workshop questions
Are there any specific features of L&T in your discipline that are difficult for the individual teacher to handle?
Could OERs help to overcome the difficulties?
What are the related challenges and opportunities for OERs?