VIVA: Virginia Course Materials Survey Task Force
Background
Sharing data that demonstrates the impact of course material costs on post-secondary students is an essential part of the conversation when engaging state government personnel, university administrators, and faculty on the value of Open Educational Resources (OER). The most commonly referenced statewide textbook surveys (e.g. Florida Textbook Survey) provide a statewide perspective on the impact of textbook costs, but there is anecdotal evidence that some Virginia administrators and faculty wonder if the results are relevant at their institutions. Existing surveys also focus predominantly on the impact of textbook costs on students but neglect to connect how costs impact the broader question of educational equity. To address these concerns, the VIVA Steering Committee tasked the Open and Affordable Course Content Committee with investigating the creation of a Virginia-wide survey with a particular emphasis on questions of equity and OER.
Charge
Develop and implement a Virginia Course Materials Assessment Survey to better understand how Virginia students are impacted by the costs of course materials and the extent to which these costs affect educational equity in the Commonwealth. The Task Force will review relevant surveys, draft a statewide student survey that addresses the impact of course material costs on educational equity in Virginia, and collect and analyze the resulting data. The Task Force should work in partnership with members of the Virginia Assessment Group (VAG) on survey design and dissemination to ensure that the survey reaches as many students as possible in a manner that yields meaningful results. The survey should be administered to Virginia post-secondary students in 2021 with a final report completed following analysis of the data.
Task Force Members
Liz Thompson (Chair)
James Madison University
Kathleen K. Bell
George Mason University
Rorie Fredrich
Liberty University
Jessica Kirschner
Virginia Commonwealth University
Kelsey Molseed
Randolph College
Caroline Prendergast
James Madison University
Dawn Walton
Blue Ridge Community College
Anita Walz
Virginia Tech
Genya O'Gara
Virtual Library of Virginia
Anne Osterman
Virtual Library of Virginia
Sophie Rondeau
Virtual Library of Virginia
