Search Results (47)

We propose the extension for Artificial Intelligence (AI)-supported learning recommendations within higher education, focusing on enhancing the widely-used Moodle Learning Management System (LMS) and extending it to the Learning eXperience Platform (LXP). The proposed LXP is an enhancement of Moodle, with an emphasis on learning support and learner motivation, incorporating various recommendation types such as content-based, collaborative, and session-based recommendations to provide the next learning resources given by lecturers and retrieved from the content curation of Open Educational Resources (OER) for the learners. In addition, we integrated a chatbot using Large Language Models (LLMs) and Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) with AI-based recommendations to provide an effective learning experience. Full article

In an era of increasing digital transformation in education, fostering students’ intrinsic motivation and self-directed learning (SDL) is essential, particularly in dynamic fields such as Computer Science Education (CSE). This study explores whether the co-creation of Open Educational Resources (OERs) as renewable assessments can enhance intrinsic motivation and support SDL among postgraduate students. Grounded in Self-Determination Theory, social constructivism, and established SDL models, this research adopted a qualitative, phenomenological design. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with BEd Honours students who completed an OER co-creation project as part of their final assessment. Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis revealed five core themes: ownership and confidence, personal growth and SDL development, collaboration and connection, motivation and engagement, and challenges and problem solving. The findings suggest that, when students are given autonomy, purpose, and the opportunity to contribute meaningfully, they experience deeper engagement, stronger SDL skills, and a greater sense of academic agency. Informal peer interaction and scaffolded support further enhanced their learning. This study contributes to the growing evidence that open pedagogical practices, particularly renewable assessments, can transform academic culture by positioning students as active participants in knowledge creation and by promoting sustainable, student-centred learning. Full article

With the increased use of digital resources, the use of open educational resources (OERs) has become more demanding in K-12 education, especially after the outbreak of COVID-19. OERs support teachers by providing them with the ability to adapt or create learning materials to meet students’ needs. To engage K-12 teachers in the use of OERs, it is important to understand the factors affecting their willingness to adopt them. This study investigated K-12 teachers’ perceptions of using OERs in teaching. The variables, including teachers’ perceived ease of use of OERs, perceived usefulness of OERs, and technology integration self-efficacy, were examined. Other factors associated with teachers’ intention to adopt OERs were explored. Participants were teachers at a university in the north-eastern United States. Both quantitative and qualitative approaches were applied to analyze the collected data. The results indicated that the proposed variables significantly correlated with intention. Ease of use, usefulness, and technology integration self-efficacy were all significant predictors of teachers’ intention to adopt OERs, with perceived usefulness being the strongest predictor. K-12 teachers’ perceived advantages and disadvantages of using OERs in teaching are reported and discussed. Full article

With the increasing use of open educational resources (OERs) in higher education, and the potential of OERs to enhance student learning, this study investigated minority students’ perceptions of using OERs in learning computer programming. The influence of minority students’ OER perceptions on their learning outcomes, as well as the relationships of the perception variables were explored. The participants were minority students from an HBCU institution in the southeastern United States. Quantitative approaches were used to analyze the collected data. The results indicated that the minority students’ perceptions of using OERs had a significant influence on their perceived learning outcomes in learning computer programming. OER self-efficacy did not influence the minority students’ perceived learning for programming. Understanding of OERs, OER interest, and OER self-efficacy significantly predicted the minority students’ perceived value/usefulness of OERs in learning coding. Full article

Although Open Educational Resources (OERs) can help reduce costs and maximize access to instructional materials, academics face significant problems in identifying good OER textbooks. This can be traced, in part, to the low quality of many OER directories. This study evaluated more than 350 potentially relevant resources, identifying 95 multidisciplinary and 23 subject-limited OER directories that include a relatively high proportion of free textbooks rather than other OERs (syllabi, assessment materials, etc.). Comparative information is presented for each of the 118 directories, with special attention to those with high recall, high precision, explicit and meaningful selection criteria, and consistently good textbook quality. The results focus on the characteristics of the OER directories, the extent to which they support the discovery of textbooks, the particular directories that are likely to be most useful, and the ways in which the most useful directories are systematically different from the others. There are at least 24 high-quality OER directories, but three—the Open Textbook Library, the B.C. Open Collection, and LibreTexts Commons—are especially useful. By devoting more attention to directories such as these, we can overcome the greatest barrier to the adoption of OER textbooks—the difficulty of identifying titles that can replace conventional texts. Full article

Virtual learning environments (VLEs) in physical geography education offer significant potential to aid students in acquiring the essential skills for the environmental interpretation of glacial and periglacial environments for geoscience careers. Simulated real-world field experiences aim to help the student evaluate landscapes for natural hazards, assess their intensity, and translate and communicate this information to various stakeholders in human systems. The TREE-PG framework and VRUI model provide a philosophical and practical foundation for VLE architects, aiming to cultivate students’ knowledge, skills, and identity as geoscientists, specifically as physical geographers and geomorphologists. These frameworks emphasize the importance of translating scientific knowledge from physical features into engaging, accessible online lessons, exemplified by landscapes like those in Glacier National Park, Montana. Open-source software and open educational resources (OERs) can broaden access and incorporate diverse perspectives in these experiences, which are necessary to address the impacts of vulnerable communities to global deglaciation. Designing and creating virtual proxies of field-based education may help address issues associated with inclusion and belonging within geoscience disciplines to connect all students with dynamic physical environments beyond the classroom. Ethical AI approaches and discipline-specific repositories are needed to ensure high-quality, contextually accurate VLEs. AI’s tendency to produce output necessitates using domain-specific guardrails to maintain relevance and precision in virtual educational content. Full article

This paper explores the contribution of custom-trained Large Language Models (LLMs) to developing Open Education Resources (OERs) in higher education. Our empirical analysis is based on the case of a custom LLM specialized for teaching business management in higher education. This custom LLM has been conceptualized as a virtual teaching companion, aimed to serve as an OER, and trained using the authors’ licensed educational materials. It has been designed without coding or specialized machine learning tools using the commercially available ChatGPT Plus tool and a third-party Artificial Intelligence (AI) chatbot delivery service. This new breed of AI tools has the potential for wide implementation, as they can be designed by faculty using only conventional LLM prompting techniques in plain English. This paper focuses on the opportunities for custom-trained LLMs to create Open Educational Resources (OERs) and democratize academic teaching and learning. Our approach to AI chatbot evaluation is based on a mixed-mode approach, combining a qualitative analysis of expert opinions with a subsequent (quantitative) student survey. We have collected and analyzed responses from four subject experts and 204 business students at the Faculty of Economics, Business and Tourism Split (Croatia) and Faculty of Economics Mostar (Bosnia and Herzegovina). We used thematic analysis in the qualitative segment of our research. In the quantitative segment of empirical research, we used statistical methods and the SPSS 25 software package to analyze student responses to the modified BUS-15 questionnaire. Research results show that students positively evaluate the business management learning chatbot and consider it useful and responsive. However, interviewed experts raised concerns about the adequacy of chatbot answers to complex queries. They suggested that the custom-trained LLM lags behind the generic LLMs (such as ChatGPT, Gemini, and others). These findings suggest that custom LLMs might be useful tools for developing OERs in higher education. However, their training data, conversational capabilities, technical execution, and response speed must be monitored and improved. Since this research presents a novelty in the extant literature on AI in education, it requires further research on custom GPTs in education, including their use in multiple academic disciplines and contexts. Full article

Recent developments in generative artificial intelligence tools have prompted immediate reactions in the academic library community. While most studies focus on the potential impact on academic integrity, this work explored constructive applications of ChatGPT in the design of instructional materials for courses in academic information literacy. The starting point was the use of openly licenced information resources or content infrastructure as facilitators in the creation of educational materials. In the first phase, course teaching material was developed using a prompt engineering strategy, predefined standards, and a prompt script. As a second step, we experimented with designing a custom chatbot model connected to a pre-defined corpus of source documents. The results demonstrated that the final teaching material required careful revision and optimisation before use in an actual instructional programme. The experimental design of the custom chatbot was able to query specific user-defined documents. Taken together, these findings suggest that the strategic and well-planned use of ChatGPT technology in content creation can have substantial benefits in terms of time and cost efficiency. In the context of information literacy, the results provide a practical and innovative solution to integrate the new technology tool into instructional practices. Full article

The features of open educational resources (OERs) have the potential of enhancing teaching effectiveness and student learning experiences in K-12 education. Encouraging K-12 teachers to use OERs requires an understanding of the factors that have an influence on teachers’ decisions to adopt or use OERs in their teaching. In this regard, this study explored the factors related to how teachers perceived their use of OERs, including the perceived ease of use of OERs, perceived usefulness of OERs, intention to adopt OERs, attitudes, OER self-efficacy, and so on. The relationships of several proposed factors were explored. The participants were teachers from a university in the northeastern United States. Both quantitative and qualitative approaches were applied to analyze the collected data. The results indicated that teachers’ perceptions of using OERs were positive overall. Their perceived ease of use and usefulness were two significant predictors of teachers’ adoption of OERs. Other factors that addressed teachers’ willingness and challenges with the use of OER were re-ported and discussed. Full article

This study investigates the psychological, educational, and technological difficulties faced by primary education students with special needs during online teaching. An interpretative phenomenological analysis was used for the qualitative analysis of data obtained through semi-structured interviews with twenty-two (22) teachers in primary education at a European country. The results revealed that their students showed negative emotions and behaviour. Those diagnosed with autism and learning disabilities had difficulty concentrating in class, while those with sensory disabilities had epileptic instances. Students with mild mental retardation in particular found it difficult to use digital tools. Many problems, however, are due to the lack of infrastructure and digital skills, as well as proper preparation of teachers for online teaching. Therefore, students and teachers should be equipped with the necessary digital skills, specialised digital tools and accessible open educational resources (OER) in order to effectively participate in online education. Full article

Open education, Open Educational Practices (OEPs), and Open Educational Resources (OERs) have emerged as significant opportunities for enhancing global sustainability information sharing. However, the creation and sharing of OERs, as well as the usage of OEPs in Higher Education for Sustainable Development (HESD), remain limited. This study explores the implementation of OEPs in HESD, aiming to empower students to co-produce OERs on sustainable development (SD). This study, drawing on the theoretical approach of the principle of constructive alignment, proposes the development of students’ digital competence in OER production. A two-group pretest–posttest analysis of 409 students (Psychology, Economics, Education, Geography) reveals a significant increase in digital competence over time among students who produced OERs on SD, compared to their peers enrolled in courses unrelated to OER content development. We delve into the practical implications of designing OEPs in HESD and strategize to support students in their OER production processes. Full article

Universities are hives of knowledge production and innovation, but the work students produce for assessment is often utilised in a limited way, neglecting a potentially rich intellectual resource. This article investigates an activity that can make use of this resource. It has known benefits for students but is rarely used in higher education—student-generated open educational resources (OER). In descriptive case studies of two projects where students created OER as an assessed part of university coursework, the article explores the impacts of this activity on students’ learning experiences and the educational practice of teaching academics. Drawing upon social constructivist understandings of teaching and learning and a range of quantitative and qualitative data from projects with 156 students and 3 academics, the descriptive case studies illustrate how student-generated OER, guided by an OER development model, positively benefitted learners and educators. The discussion balances these benefits against some of the challenges experienced in the process. The article will argue that student-generated OER could be widely used, but specific supports are necessary for academics to facilitate this activity successfully. Full article

The purpose of this study is to map the practices regarding open educational resources’ (OERs) development and implementation at European higher education institutions (HEIs) in the field of library and information science (LIS) during the COVID-19 pandemic and to identify the challenges and obstacles to their full and optimal utilization, both during crisis situations and beyond. A systematic literature review and questionnaire-based survey yielded results from 56 European LIS schools/departments (n = 56). Statistical analysis was performed using the R programming language, and descriptive statistics were used to quantify the data sets. The results have shown that the COVID-19 pandemic served as an impetus for the adoption of OERs, particularly in the context of digital education (DE) and remote learning. However, there is still a lack of awareness of the many benefits and opportunities they provide to higher education, as evidenced by the fact than less than half LIS schools/departments used OERs. Certain issues were identified, such as the lack of institutional policies regarding OERs, inadequate peer-review of OERs, and, in most cases, the absence of monitoring and evaluation practices for OERs. The results and insights from this study can be used to improve all aspects of OERs’ implementation and thus accelerate their adoption, both with regard to LIS schools/departments and other fields. Further research into the topic through interviews and focus groups should provide a deeper understanding of opportunities, challenges and practices surrounding the adoption of OERs in the field of LIS education. Full article

Language MOOCs (L-MOOCs) are the MOOCs (Massive Open Online Courses) that focus on language learning. They may often present several problems in their design and development, such as their feasibility to improve students’ linguistic levels or in their materials’ adequacy and variety. Many of these courses have subsequently become Open Educational Resources (OERs), and their activities can be implemented in different learning situations. Our paper discusses the evaluation of the integration of the L-MOOC titled “Learn academic Spanish” (Aprende español académico) into existing curricula and the validation process carried out to evaluate its validity for the purpose of learning languages. The L-MOOC was developed within the MOOC2move project between 2018–2021 and was designed by the Open University, with the collaboration of the Spanish universities of León and Alicante. The evaluation and validation were carried out in October 2020. In an exceptional hybrid teaching situation, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the L-MOOC was taken by 345 students from the Faculty of Education of the University of Alicante. The validation of the course consisted of taking the L-MOOC, participating in the forums on the MOOC and completing the questionnaires to improve the materials. In our study, a quantitative analysis was carried out through two questionnaires provided to the students before and after implementing this L-MOOC. The results obtained underlined the effectiveness of this L-MOOC. This course and the materials provided allowed the use of OERs to practice academic Spanish and improve communicative competence of its users. Full article

Over the last decade, education has been evolving to equip students with the fundamental skills required to cope with the challenges of sustainability and inclusivity, such as quality education, access to clean water, cultural heritage preservation and protection of marine life. Technology supports the learning process by providing useful tools that enrich the learning environment, encourage active participation, improve collaboration and prepare students for their future life. Educational Robotics is one of the most popular innovative methodologies that supports the development of many skills by assembling and programming robots in a meaningful way. In this paper, the authors aim at advancing their previous work in the field of Educational Robotics applied to the marine environment by proposing a novel bioinspired educational toolkit whose design and features support activities concerning sustainability, ocean literacy, as well as STEM subjects in kindergarten through to grade twelve education. Exploiting the established educational theories and methodologies underpinning Educational Robotics, the toolkit allows for marine-themed activities, as well promoting activities concerning STEM subjects. To explain the relevance of the toolkit, the authors present the robot design, the workshops that every teacher or student can explore as an Open Educational Resource (OERs), and the results of a case study. Interestingly, the latter shows that the use of the toolkit seems to have complemented the students’ initial keen interest in technology itself, with awareness about urgent issues related to the climate and the environment. Full article