Congratulations to Dr. Heather O’Brien on her recent nomination as a Leader in Open Learning at UBC in recognition of her role in using Open Education Resources (OER) in response to moving UBC courses online. This distinction is given by the UBC Alma Mater Society (AMS), alongside the VP Academic and Provost, and the UBC Library. The recipients are nominated by students and other members of the UBC community in recognition of their work to support affordable and inclusive access to learning materials.
A Leader in Open Learning is an open education champion who has made a significant contribution to the use of open educational resources (OER) at UBC Vancouver Campus. OERs are defined as teaching, learning, and research resources that carry legal permission for open use and have positive benefits on the student experience by lowering access barriers and reducing student costs for learning materials. They also enable instructors to modify, edit, or adapt high-quality resources to fit their individual teaching goals in order to provide meaningful, contextualized materials for their students.
The UBC Alma Mater Society (AMS), alongside other University sponsors, hosted a virtual celebration and lightning talks on Monday, November 23, to acknowledge this year’s recipients and provide an opportunity to talk and connect with others involved in open practices. A full list with all the nominees and their profiles can be accessed here.
