Speaker advocates using free resources to drive down education costs
Monday, February 23, 2015 2:00 AM
News
Pittsburg, KS
Open Educational Resources (OER) is not a fad or just another educational buzz word, but a revolution in education, according to Cable Green, director of global learning at Creative Commons. Green will talk to Pittsburg State University faculty about the “Moral, Business and Police Case for OER” at 1:30 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 27, in 102 Yates Hall. Green’s PSU visit is sponsored by the Office of the Provost and the Center for Teaching, Learning and Technology.
In a 2012 online article, Green described open
educational resources as “educational materials produced by one
party that are licensed to be used free of charge by others. OER
come in many forms—from curriculum to homework assignments to
textbooks. And OER exist for all levels of education, from
kindergarten through college.”
Advocates of the use of OER cite the rising cost of textbooks as a major driver in the overall rising cost of higher education.
“OER gives us the previously unimaginable opportunity to use technology to maintain the quality of instructional materials while significantly cutting educational costs,” Green, along with David Wiley and Louis Soares wrote. “We now have the tools to literally enable everyone in the world to attain all the education they desire. More amazingly, the marginal cost of doing so is close to $0.”
Green has 15 years of academic technology, online learning, and open education experience in higher education. Prior to joining Creative Commons, Green served as director of e-learning and open education for the Washington State Board for Community and Technical Colleges. Before that, he was director of technology for the Ohio Learning Network and director of educational technology for the Ohio State University College of Pharmacy, where he built Ohio State’s first online doctoral program. He holds a PhD in educational psychology from Ohio State University, a master’s degree in communication from Ohio State and a bachelor’s degree in international affairs from Lewis and Clark College.