Assessing the OER & Textbook Experience at UTSA

The UTSA DOERS Grant Team held focus groups with Core Curriculum faculty in Spring 2025. During the focus groups, faculty shared their experiences with textbooks and OER.

OER Perceptions

UTSA faculty expressed mixed perceptions of OER. About half of the disciplines reported limited availability, making it challenging to find resources that meet all instructional needs. Concerns centered on quality and relevance, with some existing options, such as OpenStax, described as outdated, error-prone, and lacking key topics. While certain sociology materials were insufficient, some full courses were considered high quality. Faculty strongly appreciate OER benefits, including barrier-free student access, flexibility to modify content, and the ability to integrate specific modules. However, support needs remain, particularly for ancillary materials in large classes. Despite these challenges, there is clear optimism for future development, with enthusiasm for incorporating OER into courses and interest in creating tailored, self-authored resources.

Textbook Criteria

When evaluating textbooks, faculty prioritize accessibility and readability, along with relevance and alignment to course goals. They look for scholarly depth, clear structure, and visual appeal, while ensuring coverage of fundamental concepts, including the scientific method and quantitative skills. Additional considerations include quality and timeliness, affordability, and the availability of supplemental resources. Faculty also value alignment with existing teaching materials, grading scalability, and, in some cases, express interest in developing tailored texts to better meet pedagogical needs.

Barriers to Adoption

UTSA faculty identified several barriers to adopting OER across disciplines. Time constraints, including the effort required for initial adoption and ongoing maintenance, were the most common challenge. Concerns about quality, accessibility, and the ability to align content with assignments and exercises were also prevalent. Faculty noted a lack of ancillaries and supplemental materials, particularly for large classes, as well as limited access options for some library e-books. Additional obstacles included fear of being the first to adopt, lack of familiarity, stigma and bias toward OER, insufficient training, and limited incentives to invest in OER development.

Improve Support 

Faculty suggested several strategies to strengthen OER adoption at UTSA. The most common recommendation was to address time challenges through compensation, incentives, and flexible funding. They emphasized the need for training and hands-on demonstrations on finding, evaluating, and implementing OER, along with clear points of contact and strong librarian support. Building peer networks, sharing discipline-specific resources, and promoting tools like the Library Reading List were also highlighted. Faculty want ancillaries and test banks, especially for large classes, and proposed formal recognition structures at departmental, college, and university levels. Additional ideas included more student OER testimonials, robust compensation, and creating a culture of collaboration through shared resources and communication.

Recognition

Faculty recommended multiple strategies to enhance recognition for OER efforts at UTSA. Suggestions included formal awards at the department, college, and university levels: ideas included “Best Use of OER,” innovative teaching awards, and inclusion in University Excellence Awards. They proposed support for conference participation at state and national OER events and incorporating OER work into promotion and tenure processes and faculty evaluations. Additional ideas included course release time, additional pay, and recognition of varying levels of OER work (authoring, reviewing, editing, adopting). Faculty also suggested student evaluation indicators, badges or gold stars, and creating friendly competitions to foster engagement.

Textbook Challenges

Architecture instructors struggle to find resources for interdisciplinary topics, noting that even commercial textbooks often fail to meet course needs, lack high-quality visuals, and do not match students’ reading levels. In Earth and Planetary Sciences, concerns include high costs, frequent new editions, and the absence of suitable texts for quantitative courses or rapidly evolving fields. Management Science and Statistics faculty cited limited time, insufficient practice problems, overly broad coverage of software tools, and single-perspective explanations. Sociology faculty highlighted technical and logistical issues, such as problems with digital platforms, reliance on external systems, bookstore ordering delays, early adoption deadlines, and difficulties students face navigating bookstore processes.

OER Challenges

The most common barrier is time, including the effort required to review, adapt, and maintain materials. Concerns about quality, outdated or error-prone content, and gaps in key topics were frequently cited, along with the lack of ancillaries and automated grading tools for large classes. Additional issues include accessibility requirements, difficulty printing OER, and confusion about distinctions between OER, open access, and library resources. Some faculty expressed hesitation about being early adopters, noting a “lone wolf” fear, while others highlighted the need for better support and clarity to ensure instructional quality.

Improving Student Awareness of Textbooks

Faculty suggested several strategies to increase student awareness of textbook requirements and options. Recommendations included clearer communication through syllabi, course schedules, and early notifications, as well as leveraging digital platforms and learning management systems to highlight textbook details and costs. Faculty emphasized the importance of transparent pricing and availability information, timely bookstore updates, and integrating textbook access instructions directly into course materials. Additional ideas included visual indicators or badges for affordable and accessible resources, and promoting awareness campaigns to help students understand textbook formats and access points.

Improving Textbook Affordability 

Faculty proposed several strategies to reduce textbook costs for students. Suggestions included expanding library reserves and digital reserves, particularly by providing multiple copies for high-enrollment courses. In Earth and Planetary Sciences, faculty recommended allowing the use of earlier editions to lower expenses. Management Science and Statistics faculty emphasized creating collaborative resources, such as a shared test bank, and developing a full OER textbook with original problems to eliminate reliance on costly commercial texts.

Faculty Awareness of OER Legislation, UTSA Textbook Filters, and UTSA OER Reporting Process

Most of the faculty that participated in the Focus Groups were not aware of the legislation, the filters, or the reporting process.

OER or Textbook Experiences, Successes, Challenges, or Resources

Faculty experiences with textbooks vary across disciplines. In Architecture, instructors noted a lack of OER and emphasized the need to create resources to fill gaps, highlighting the importance of affordability for students. Management Science and Statistics faculty similarly expressed the need to develop OER that align with UTSA course goals. While Earth and Planetary Sciences reported no significant updates, Sociology faculty pointed to the value of centralized resources, such as an OER Hub, and the integration of materials into Canvas to streamline access and adoption.