Enhancing the learning of computing/IT students with open educational resources

Abstract

With the advent of the Internet, there is now a vast amount of useful learning resources available. These public resources or Open Educational Resources (OERs) can complement traditional teaching/lectures and student learning. In this paper, we make two contributions to the development of OERs for the global education community. First, we analyze the popular computing/IT-related OERs at MERLOT, one of the major OER repositories in the world. Through the analysis of peer reviews and other data, we present interesting findings and valuable insights for the development of OERs, particularly for the computer science discipline. Second, we present an innovative 3E (Enrich, Extend, Elevate) strategy/pedagogy for the use of OERs with the aim of enhancing student learning from different perspectives. In particular, students can play an important role, to find and even create OERs to enhance their learning to a new dimension.