Students’ Perceived Barriers of the Use of OER: The Case of a South African Higher Education Institution

Abstract

Access to Higher Education plays an integral role in social and economic development and transformation. In South Africa, not only access to quality teaching and learning is influenced by the limited number of Higher Education Institutions (HEIs), but also access to resources. For HEIs in developing countries alternative resources than a prescribed book should be used to facilitate the teaching and learning of the academic programmes. Open education resources (OERs), as a teaching and learning tool, can assist lecturers to achieve the learning outcomes and facilitate the development of innovative teaching and learning approaches. Furthermore, the use of OERs can create opportunities for students in HEIs to increase their engagement with the discipline specific content. However, there are also several barriers that can hinder students in HEIs to capitalize on these opportunities. This study investigated the perceived barriers of the use of OER at a South African HEI. A self-administered online questionnaire was distributed in order to determine the perceived barriers of first year students completing a business management module at a South African HEI. Overall, 287 completed questionnaires were included in the data analysis. The results indicated the main factors that act as perceived barriers were social barriers, coursework barriers and technology concerns. The HEI should consider allowing for social interaction when OER is integrated in coursework, with adequate face-to-face sessions to enhance the learning experience of students.