The 2015 Inside Higher Ed Survey of Faculty Attitudes
on Technology found that 92% of responding faculty and 97% of administrators
agreed that open educational resources (OER) should be used more in the
classroom.
Now, the informational technology pros on campus have chimed in.
The Campus Computer Survey found that
81% of responding technology officers said OER will be an important source of
instructional material in the next five years. They also said that 38% of their
institutions are encouraging faculty to use OER, up from 33% just a year ago.
The top priority for campus IT officials is helping
faculty members integrate information technology into their lessons, according
to a blog post in The Chronicle of Higher Education. However, the report also found that just
17% of campuses include instructional IT as part of the faculty review and
promotion process.
“This is what IT officers think is important, but then
we’ve got the continuing struggle,” said Kenneth C. Green, founding director of
the survey. “Why is it that we don’t recognize the faculty members who do that
as part of review and promotion?”
Providing user support and having qualified IT staff
were next on the priority list, followed by network security and leveraging IT
for student success.
