Next Steps

Consider the why, what, who, when & how of GoOpenNC, and determine what next step(s) you plan to take.

District: American Renaissance School

Team: Danielle Cusick & John Mairs

Critical Path

Why?

Consider: Why is OER a value-add to our district and teams?  

Why will framing be an important component of successful engagement?

Discussion/Notes:

OER is a value-add to our charter primarily because of the free and open source nature. Budget is a huge concern for any charter school, and we spend a lot of money on closed-source resources. Empowering our teachers to not only use, but also modify, create, or share resources across the school and state will be a huge advantage.

Action Items:

• Develop PD on OER and Creative Commons.
• Develop a strategy to rollout OER and ensure buy-in.

What

Consider: Do I need to learn more about OER, OEP, and/or open licensing?

Would be helpful to me if I can spend more time learning about the features and functionality of the microsite?

In my district/school, we have created openly-licensed content that could be added to the microsite.  Do I need to consider the process for making this happen?

Discussion/Notes:

Our teachers definitely need additional training on intellectual property rights. Before they even see the microsite, we need to ensure they understand licensing and fair use. Once they get in to the microsite,  we need to ensure they understand the purpose and value behind not only using, but also remixing and creating content with a Creative Commons license.

Action Items:

• Develop PD on intellectual property / fair use / Creative Commons
• Ensure teachers understand the purpose of OER: why should they give away their work for free? Develop materials.

Who?

Consider: I know there are OER champions already in my district/school. How can I best connect with them to discuss GoOpenNC?

How can I best determine other instructional leaders in my district/school who can join me as thought partners as we investigate OER/OEP?

Discussion/Notes:

We really don't see very much content creation or modification in our school. We see a lot of teachers using resources, but very seldom do they actually create or modify anything. We have a few creators / teachers with potential that we could perhaps tap to pilot. Another concern to address is how many resources we have — we really need to create a blueprint (similar to MGSD) to describe what resources are available.

Action Items:

• Create list / blueprint of resources
• Identify teachers to tap as creators and/or reviewers
• Determine our expectations around the use and creation of OER in our school

When?

Consider: When are there opportunities for teachers and instructional leaders to engage in professional learning related to OER?

When the district/school reviews and selects instructional materials, can we could consider OER and how those materials can be utilized?

Discussion/Notes:

We're definitely interested in sharing this system in time for the 2019-2020 school year. We definitely need to begin developing resources now. We also need to discuss as a leadership team how OER fits in to our educational philosophy, especially as contracts for paid curriculum programs come close to expiration.

Action Items:

• Develop PD resources around OER
• Discuss in leadership the purpose of OER and what we want to do with it
• Determine whether or not we think OER can replace paid commercial products

How?

Consider: I need to spend time considering how teachers in my district/school are currently selecting instructional materials, and what supports they need to effectively select high quality, standards aligned resources.

How can we best support teachers as they find, vet, use, and create OER.

Are there opportunities for teachers to curate and align OER to standards?

Discussion/Notes:

Few of our teachers are truly creators. We have to find a way to move them from consumerism to creation. A good way to support them in this transition may be to start with a small pilot group to review existing OER. Once they're comfortable finding and reviewing OER, we can move to actually using it, and finally to actually creating it.

Action Items:

• Identify teachers for a small pilot group
• Determine leadership expectations for OER
• Ensure complete understanding of the evaluation rubric on the microsite