OER Pioneer OpenStax Launches Personalized Learning Tool for 3 Courses -- Campus Technology

"The Rice University non-profit that has released almost two-dozen free textbooks into academia is beta-testing a new personalized learning system that works with its materials. OpenStax, which stated that it provides open educational resources to a million students each year, has been developing OpenStax Tutorfor three years. The new service will be available this fall for three courses: college physics, biology and sociology.

The tutoring service, which is available online, uses web-based OpenStax textbooks to deliver content, simulations, videos, 'spaced' practice questions and instant feedback. There is no software to download. While students study, Tutor 'learns' how they learn and what areas they struggle with and then uses that information to 'tutor' them. The program personalizes the assessments and schedules practice optimally to help users focus effort on areas that need extra work and support them in remembering what they've already learned in the course."