Student usage of open educational resources and social media at a Sri Lanka Medical School

Background The use of Open Educational Resources (OER) and Social Media (SM) for academic information seeking is common among undergraduates nowadays. There is limited data on OER and SM use for education in Sri Lanka. This study was aimed at evaluating the OER and SM use for education among the medical students at the Faculty of Medicine, University of Kelaniya, Sri Lanka. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted at the Faculty of Medicine, University of Kelaniya. Stratified random sampling was used to select students from the first year to the final year. A self-administrated questionnaire was used to collect data. Results The study included 257 responses (response rate: 89.5%), of which 185 (72.0%) were females. The OER and SM use for educational purposes at least once a month among students was 96.1% (95%CI: 93.7–98.5%) and 88.3% (95%CI: 84.4–92.3%) respectively. There was no gender difference in OER and SM use. The main reasons for accessing OER were the availability of information at any time (36.1%) and ease of information access (31.5%). Wiki sites (84.4%) and Facebook (79.8%) were the highest accessed OER and SM platforms. The majority of students were in view that the information on wiki sites (51.4%) and results of general non-specific web searches (56.0%) were reliable. Only 33.9% of students searched information from educational and government-related sources and 18.7% had accessed e-journals. Through SM, 79.0% joined educational groups and 77.0% followed the medical-related sites, pages and people. More than one-third of students (35.8%) could not find academic information from SM due to the information overload and 31.1% mentioned that SM distracted their education. Conclusion The majority of the students used OER and SM for education; however, only a minority accessed reliable information. Students accepted information available in wiki sites and general non-specific web searchers without considering the credibility of sources. The majority of the students did not refer to e-journals. Distractions to academic work and the difficulty to access accurate information were major concerns of using SM. This study highlights the importance of improving information literacy among medical students.

Metadata Technology Integration in Libraries

This chapter explores metadata technology integration as a panacea for effective learning in the 21st century libraries. The high influx of information resources into libraries necessitated a shift from printed to digitally web-based form of preserving and describing information, which affected users' access to information. This implies direct involvement of librarians in the cycle of influencers of open educational resources. In the review, ontology of metadata and repositories of learning object have demonstrated how UNESCO's proclamation about open educational resources has stimulated visible accessibility to information globally. Various ways of including librarians in the push for inclusive access to education have been highlighted.

Strategies for Effective Online Teaching and Learning

This chapter provides readers with a comprehensive review of strategies for effective design in online instruction. The authors explore the traditional debate between advocates and critics of online education and discuss effectiveness in retention, engagement, and overall academic performance. The chapter differentiates between “online-first” course design and emergency remote delivery, as experienced in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. Key factors include identifying engagement and communication strategies such as “ask me anything” sessions and tailored selection of resources. Open educational resources (OER), pre-recorded lectures, podcasts, and “online-first” textbooks are presented as appropriate and cost-conscious content options. Also included are alternative assessment ideas and universal design for learning (UDL) and accessibility guidelines. The chapter provides a continuum model for the transition of in-person courses to online instruction while conscious of both instructor workload/instructional support and expected level of learner workload and engagement.

Supporting Language Learning With OERs and Open-Authoring Tools

Open educational resources (OERs) in language learning have recently captured the interests of language educators, curriculum developers, and researchers as these open-source materials serve as an alternative to traditional textbooks and costly web-based learning resources. OERs offer several benefits for language learners, including access to controlled language practice, self-study, engagement, and learning satisfaction. These resources can also promote innovative instructional practices that respond to constructivist and interactionist perspectives of second language acquisition. However, widespread use of open resources remains low among language teachers for several reasons, including a lack of awareness of how to develop and use them, overreliance on commercially produced textbooks, scarcity of resources, and guidelines for developing original open resources. In this chapter, the authors explore how to best approach the process of creating and using open resources in order to develop and promote OERs among language educators.

An Open Perspective for Educational Games

In the field of computers in education, educational digital games have potential to involve more issues of motivation and involvement, considering their possibilities for higher level of interaction and engagement. However, years of research have shown that the impact of educational games is lower than expected, especially the difficulty to adapt them to different educational contexts, such as with different educational, linguistic, cultural and social aspects. In that sense, this article presents an open perspective on the development of educational games, emphasizing the challenges related to their development and their effective potential for use in education, proposing that they be designed as Open Educational Resources (OER). From this perspective, it is expected to support communities that would aggregate developers (programmers, game designers, media producers, etc.) and users (teachers and students) so they can work collaboratively in creating educational games in an open way.