What are third-party course materials?
Third-party course materials are educational resources used to provide course content and activities that are developed outside of the University (i.e., by a third party). These might include textbooks, tests, quizzes, other assessments, audio or video recordings, software, problem sets, or other artifacts.
Faculty are certainly allowed to use third-party materials to enrich their courses. There are no policies limiting the number of third-party materials that can be included in a Penn State course, and faculty are not limited to the inclusion of only a certain percentage of third-party materials; however, careful attention must be paid to how these materials are used. Based on the “Third-Party Content and Open Education Resources Ad Hoc Committee Report” produced by the Digital Learning Advisory Council in 2018, this document outlines important considerations, recommendations, and best practices related to the use of third-party course materials in a Penn State course.
Why use third-party course materials?
When developing a course, faculty rely on their own expertise as well as the expertise of others in their discipline. It is common practice, for example, to incorporate textbooks and published articles as required or supplementary materials for a course as a way to enrich the course content and convey diverse viewpoints. In this digital age, bringing such resources into a course is quite easy and is not limited to the written word. Simulations, interactive problem sets, pre-recorded guest speakers, and more, when carefully curated, can add valuable experiences to a course.
It is important, however, to recognize that a course is more than just a set of course materials. What makes it a “Penn State” course is the presence of our faculty. It is their engagement as they help students make meaning of course concepts, the formative feedback they deliver to help students progress towards achieving course learning outcomes, and the ways in which they inspire a passion for their discipline that make a course “Penn State.” In other words, providing content alone does not make a suitable learning experience for Penn State students. The integration of third-party materials must support the learning goals and objectives of the course and enhance—rather than subtract from—faculty and student interactions.
In consultation with a department head or associate dean, faculty members are expected to take the responsibility for identifying how third-party course materials will contribute to the development and delivery of their Penn State courses. This may be identified at the time of development, course approval, or revisions of course materials.
Where do you start?
1. Review relevant University policies
2. Consider whether there are low or no-cost materials available for your needs
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- Ensuring access and affordability are high priorities for our University. As shared in the 2016 report of the Open Educational Resources Task Force, “Course materials comprise a significant financial burden for students, with costs hovering around $1200 annually for undergraduate students…. A major reason is that students are not purchasing their texts because of cost. In one study 65% of students reported not purchasing a textbook because of its high cost. Faculty have observed that some students do not have texts until well into the semester, if at all. [Open Education Resources] is an important component, not only to support access and affordability, but also to drive pedagogical innovation. Studies conducted at Virginia State University and Houston Community College found that students who used open textbooks tended to have higher grades and lower withdrawal rates than their peers.”
- A wealth of information about open educational resources, including “how to” guidance, can be found at the University’s Open Educational Resources website.
3. See if your digital materials have already been vetted by the University
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- Any digital application or software used by students or educators for a class, such as online lessons, homework sessions, and quizzes or tests, is referred to as “courseware” by the University (see the University’s Courseware website). For third party courseware to be used in a course, it first must be reviewed and authorized by the University to ensure it meets the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) and accessibility requirements.
- Penn State maintains a list of reviewed digital applications or software on its Courseware website. This list may already include the application or software you are interested in using, so carefully review this list to see if it has already been vetted and approved or denied for use.
- If you do not see your desired digital application or software listed on the website and/or you are not sure if the third party courseware you want to use can be integrated into your course, complete the Courseware request form to begin the formal review process.
4. Determine if the materials are accessible from a usability perspective
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- Software that has been reviewed and approved through the above process either meets the University’s accessibility standards as set forth in AD69, or the University’s IT Accessibility Group is engaged in the integration process to offer an alternative access plan.
- Frequently asked questions regarding general information and policies for accessibility and third-party content can be found on the Accessibility at Penn State website. Specific questions about accessibility can be directed to accessibility@psu.edu.
- For questions specific to your campus, contact your Campus Disability Coordinator for further assistance.
5. Determine if students need special authentication to access the materials
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- Some digital third-party materials require a special access code for student access. These codes are often bundled with textbook or other publisher content. If the materials are not integrated with Canvas or other Penn State software, authentication to access those materials will be different from the student’s WebAccess ID.
- It is permissible to use an application or shared space where all students use the same access code, URL, phone number, IP address, etc. (e.g., a Zoom space, Office 365 space, or Box folder) to access materials, provided that Penn State’s contract with the vendor permits this.
- Information for how to access third-party materials should be provided to your students in your syllabus, course content, or within your course policies.
6. Confirm that you are able to access the same resources as your students
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- It is vital that faculty be able to manage their course environment regardless of whether the space is physical or digital. Third-party materials and platforms must enable faculty to manage the flow of information in the learning environment and provide faculty with full access to the materials.
7. Find out if there is a cost to your students
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- There may be an additional cost that each student needs to pay in order to access the third-party materials that you want to require for your course. These details are often found in third-party vendor license agreements. It is important to be familiar with the exact agreement and license that governs the third-party materials you are using as well as the potential costs that may be passed along to your students.
- NOTE: The Office of Ethics and Compliance reminds us that students should not be asked to pay extra costs beyond their tuition in order to complete course assessments of their knowledge and skills.
- Students should be informed of all costs they will incur as a result of the incorporation of third-party materials. Ideally, information should be available to prospective students prior to course registration so each can make an informed decision. This can be easily accomplished by adding the materials to the listing of course requirements with the bookstore and also to the course syllabus.
- NOTE: If you are teaching through Penn State World Campus, be sure to inform your learning design team that you are using third-party course materials so that the design team can make sure those materials are listed as part of the World Campus course information.
- Sometimes a vendor will offer course materials at no cost to end users, but then change the license agreement with little notice and, subsequently, require a cost for access. Understanding how these licenses affect student access is important to share with your students as early as possible.
- There may be an additional cost that each student needs to pay in order to access the third-party materials that you want to require for your course. These details are often found in third-party vendor license agreements. It is important to be familiar with the exact agreement and license that governs the third-party materials you are using as well as the potential costs that may be passed along to your students.
8. Develop a strategy for what you will do if the vendor stops supporting the application or materials
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- Occasionally, third-party vendors go out of business or stop supporting applications or content. For departmental or University licenses, this will often be accompanied by ample lead time to adjust or to find alternatives. In some cases, there may be little time to prepare for such an adjustment.
9. Find out if there will be any privacy concerns for your students’ data
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- In the vendor’s license agreement, it is important that you understand the extent to which the vendor has access to class lists or to student data such as grades and evaluations. The Office of the University Registrar has published University FERPA guidelines to assist faculty in understanding the issues regarding access to student data.
- Some third-party applications may require class lists to be shared with the vendor. Under University policy guidelines, the University must first have a FERPA-compliant contract with the vendor before this exchange can happen. For questions about this process, contact purchasesoftware@psu.edu.
- NOTE: This step is automatically done as part of the University’s vetting process (see #2 above).
10. Identify any intellectual property or copyright concerns
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- Depending on the vendor’s license agreement and the way you plan to use the third-party materials, there may be copyright concerns (especially in the use of printed textbook materials). A helpful way to discern the appropriate use of third-party content is through the University’s Copyright Basics website and the Fair Use Checklist.
- For questions about course content and copyright, see Copyright, Publishing, and Open Access.
Need further assistance?
Members of Penn State’s learning design community can help you with the incorporation of third-party materials into your course. To locate learning design support near you, see Learning Design at Penn State.
Page Contact: Ann Taylor