This practitioner research project utilized a case study approach to examine advantages and challenges students have experienced due to the implementation of an open educational resource (OER) in English 095: College Reading. This is one of several developmental courses offered at Wor-Wic, a rural, open-admissions community college on the Eastern Shore of Maryland. ENG 095 is designed to help improve reading comprehension and vocabulary development for underprepared learners. As course coordinator, I hypothesized that replacing our reading comprehension textbook with an OER would save the hundreds of students who enroll in the course every year thousands of dollars, hopefully while improving student outcomes. I designed an OER specific to our course using the LibreTexts platform and piloted the new curriculum in 2022-2023. By eliminating the pricey textbook, students saved well over $20,000 in textbook costs in year one alone. With the OER still in use, this case study explores potential impacts on student learning outcomes by comparing quantitative data sources gathered from sections taught before and after I began designing my course around the LibreTexts platform. I also draw on my qualitative research background, analyzing written feedback from current students and recalling anecdotal observations throughout my years teaching the course. By analyzing course and final exam pass rates before and after implementing the OER, I found that the impact on student learning was not entirely clear, but that in most semesters after OER adoption, pass rates were similar (though typically slightly lower) to those achieved by students who used a traditional text. However, additional barriers may have been created relating to the technological difficulties some students experienced because of the transition. The small sample of written responses gathered from current students indicated that most students who gave their opinion had a favorable impression of the OER, particularly relating to the financial benefit.

Keywords

open textbook · reading comprehension · practitioner