Open Education Resources

In recent years more and more high quality educational content has become available online for free. This content is known as Open Education Resources (OERs).

OERs represent:

• Easy access to resources that foster lifelong learning 
• Small chunks of knowledge that can be integrated into a larger curriculum 
• High quality content developed and distributed in the spirit of the Open Access movement 

A license that allows users to modify, combine and repurpose the content

The small chunks of knowledge in OERs are useful because they can fill in learning gaps, especially where concepts build on each other. For example, you may need to refresh your knowledge about quadratic equations in order to be successful in a calculus class. You need something quick that is focused on a specific topic. An OER is the place to get that.

The Khan Academy is an example of these resources. It is a not-for-profit organization with over 2,700 educational videos about math, the sciences, art history, economics, and history. The Khan Academy really shines in math, where there are hundreds of videos about algebra, calculus, geometry, statistics, and math problems for the SAT and GMAT. In addition to the videos, there are practice math problems you can work out on your own. You can check your answer to see if it is correct and also see the steps taken to solve the problem.

The creator of the videos is a MIT graduate. The videos are unique in that he explains the concepts as he understands them, in a conversational style that is direct and to the point. Each video is about 10 minutes long. The perfect length to focus in on a topic, but not so long that you’ll zone out.

If you are interested in learning about other OERs check out this link.

(Post by Rebecca Caudle, E-Learning Librarian at the Georgia College LITC)

Mad Library Science!

Welcome to the very first installment of the Georgia College LITC's "Mad Library Science" blog postings.

What exactly do we mean by "Mad Library Science," you say? We're glad you asked...

At the encouragement of an educator in the Baldwin County school system (and alumna of GC), we are going to be posting information here on helpful educational technology. Some of these technologies are going to be new and exciting, and some will be not so new...but exciting nonetheless.

Just look here on the blog for posts with the "Mad Library Science" label and you'll find something that can help you as an educator, or even as just a person who's interested in useful technology.

For our first technological recommendation, we're going to introduce you to the wonderful mobile app that got this whole idea started: DocScanner.

DocScanner is an app (short for 'application' for those who may not speak the techno lingo) that allows you to turn your iPhone, Android phone, or mobile device using the S60 software platform into a scanner.

Yes, you read that correctly; it turns your phone into a scanner.

Once you've installed the app on your compatible mobile device, you simply open DocScanner, designate what type of file you want to save (JPEG graphic, PDF document, or OCR editable text file), where you want to send it (your Dropbox or Google Docs account), and then you take the best picture you can of the item you're scanning. That's it.

The implications are incredible with this kind of technology:

• Take a handout from your meeting and turn it into a digital copy that can be accessed anywhere.
• Turn a fun paper handout from a conference into a reusable activity for students.
• Create a digital copy of your example project for display in the classroom.
• Move one step closer to being "paperless."
• Bypass a compatibility issue with technological equipment in your classroom to make your resources work.

By the way, that last bullet point is exactly what our educator friend did with her copy of DocScanner. It's just one application of cool new technology that can be a great tool in real life.

DocScanner isn't free, unfortunately, but it is a fairly inexpensive piece of software for all that it does. DocScanner costs are:

• $4.99 for the iPhone version in the Apple App Store 
• $1.99 for the Android version in the Android Market 
• $1.99 for the S60 version in the Nokia OviStore

For more general information, visit the official DocScanner site at www.docscannerapp.com.

Thanks for stopping by; we'll see you next month with another technology tool in our next installment of Mad Library Science.