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The free and open publication of course materials (OpenCourseWare or OCW) was initially undertaken by Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and other universities primarily to share educational resources among educators (Abelson, 2007). OCW, however, and more in general open educational resources (OER), have also provided well-documented opportunities for all learners, including the so-called "informal learners" and "independent learners" (Carson, 2005; Mulder, 2006, p. 35). Universities have also increasingly documented clear benefits for specific target groups such as secondary education students and lifelong learners seeking to enter formal postsecondary education programs. In addition to benefitting learners, OCW publication has benefitted the publishing institutions themselves by providing recruiting advantages. Finally enrollment figures from some institutions indicate that even in the case of the free and open publication of materials from online programs, OCW does not negatively affect enrollment. This paper reviews evaluation conducted at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health (JHSPH), and Open Universiteit Nederland (OUNL) concerning OCW effects on higher education participation and student recruitment. (Contains 5 tables and 4 footnotes.)

The need for public health knowledge is ever increasing, but the educational options have been limited to coursework delivered by academics to individuals who can afford the cost of tuition at public health institutions. To overcome this disparity, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health (JHSPH) has joined the Massachusetts Institute of Technology-initiated OpenCourseWare (OCW) movement to publish and share its collection of course content with the public at no charge. The JHSPH OCW project began in 2005 with funding support from the Hewlett Foundation. Its publishing process was integrated into the school-wide web supplement system for managing course content. To date, content from more than 60 graduate-level courses has been published, drawing an average of 40,000 visitors per month. OCW provides resources for faculty and students, both within and outside JHSPH in their pursuit of public health education. An OCW Image Library was created to provide object-level access to illustrations produced by JHSPH OCW to replace copyright-protected images removed from faculty course materials. Internal support and external assistance are both essential for the success of an Open Educational Resources (OER) programme; JHSPH OCW would have been impossible without administrative buy-in, faculty participation, an adaptable technology infrastructure, Hewlett Foundation funding, and shared wisdom from Massachusetts Institute of Technology. This is an ideal time for institutions to develop their own OER programmes, possibly by working with the OCW Consortium, through which institutions have access to the collective experience of existing OER producers.

Abstract Background Distance learning may be useful for building health research capacity. However, evidence that it can improve knowledge and skills in health research, particularly in resource-poor settings, is limited. We compared the impact and acceptability of teaching two distinct content areas, Biostatistics and Research Ethics, through either on-line distance learning format or traditional on-site training, in a randomized study in India. Our objective was to determine whether on-line courses in Biostatistics and Research Ethics could achieve similar improvements in knowledge, as traditional on-site, classroom-based courses. Methods Subjects: Volunteer Indian scientists were randomly assigned to one of two arms. Intervention: Students in Arm 1 attended a 3.5-day on-site course in Biostatistics and completed a 3.5-week on-line course in Research Ethics. Students in Arm 2 attended a 3.5-week on-line course in Biostatistics and 3.5-day on-site course in Research Ethics. For the two course formats, learning objectives, course contents and knowledge tests were identical. Main Outcome Measures: Improvement in knowledge immediately and 3-months after course completion, compared to baseline. Results Baseline characteristics were similar in both arms (n = 29 each). Median knowledge score for Biostatistics increased from a baseline of 49% to 64% (p < 0.001) 3 months after the on-site course, and from 48% to 63% (p = 0.009) after the on-line course. For the on-site Research Ethics course, median score increased from 69% to 83% (p = 0.005), and for the on-line Research Ethics course from 62% to 80% (p < 0.001). Three months after the course, median gains in knowledge scores remained similar for the on-site and on-line platforms for both Biostatistics (16% vs. 12%; p = 0.59) and Research Ethics (17% vs. 13%; p = 0.14). Conclusion On-line and on-site training formats led to marked and similar improvements of knowledge in Biostatistics and Research Ethics. This, combined with logistical and cost advantages of on-line training, may make on-line courses particularly useful for expanding health research capacity in resource-limited settings.

The purpose of this study is to present results of an extremely low frequency magnetic field exposure assessment performed in a large office building environment. The extremely low frequency magnetic field assessment strategy included an evaluation of full-shift personal exposure for building occupants, a determination of average work area magnetic fields, and magnetic field characterizations of sources withineach work area. An employee questionnaire regarding daily utilization patterns of workplace magnetic field sources was also used to help interpret exposure information. Magnetic field exposures were determined using EMDEX magnetic field exposure meters. For personal magneticfield characterization, each participant wore the monitor for a fullshift, and office area magnetic fields were determined as the average of five equally spaced measurements. In situ source characterization included measuring magnetic fields at 30 and 50 cm from pieces of electrical equipment. 259 employees in the building under investigation agreed to participate in the exposure assessment. Personal and areaextremely low frequency magnetic field exposures were low, averaging1.0 +/- 1.1 mG (n = 247) and 0.8 +/- 0.6 mG (n = 253), respectively.In general, area magnetic field measurements were statistically lower than daily personal magnetic field exposures. The results of this investigation indicate that, except for individuals who routinely passthrough a static field created by a book theft device in an on-site library during their workday, personal exposures were not strongly influenced by the number and types of equipment used or the floor on which a person worked. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]