Session One Recap and Introductions

Textbook Success Program June 2023 Cohort
1

It was wonderful to meet so many of you, and see all teams in our cohort represented at our first session!

Our main focus was to get to know one another’s projects, understand how our sessions will be structured, and learn about Rebus’ tools and approaches. Here are this week’s homework activities:

  • Agree to the Memorandum of Understanding for our cohort (if you did not complete this during our session).
  • Write a brief introduction for yourself and your project by replying to this topic. Include your role on the project and the dream goal you have for it.
  • Read through the first five slides for Session 2: Project Scoping. Share the outcomes that most interest you or make you want to know more, as well as any questions you have by replying to this topic. These activities should give you a chance to familiarize yourself with the tools we use to facilitate our interactions in the Textbook Success Program.

And here is a link to our Session One chat.

We also spent a bit of time discussing Rebus’ collaborative approach to publishing, and how a larger community around a resource can not only make it stronger, but also help maintain it down the line. Our approach hinges on thinking about communications, accessibility, formatting, and more at each stage to really harness the global potential of OER. And these stages can and most likely will be flexible, and thus play out in different ways for each team — that’s what the model is built to do! I was thrilled to see how you all are already thinking about these issues with your projects.

We also discussed how being transparent about the process of creation can invite others to contribute and be involved in your projects, whether in big ways or small. Using a public-facing space for your project planning and communication, for example, is a unique way to broadcast your project and invite collaborators to join efforts in its creation.

We use tools for the Textbook Success Program like Curriculum Hub in Google. We also mentioned the Rebus Community Forum, where this recap is posted and where we will conveniently streamline ALL our cohort communication. All materials will be available to you throughout the program. We encourage you to share your questions here! Please note that you can use the tag @june23-cohort for conversations that include all cohort members. In addition, you can also write direct messages to individuals, not only in your cohort, but also in the entire forum space. Refer to the video tutorials in your session one handout for a more in-depth overview of the forum and its features.

Finally, we had a brief but fascinating discussion about the role of AI in OER content creation and student learning. This happens to be a special interest of mine right now, so I’m sure we will consider this more in future sessions. I recommend following people like Lance Eaton, Jane Rosenzweig, and Anna Mills on Twitter for current AI education discourse.

Please feel free to tag me @lizalong if you have questions. I look forward to seeing you all next week!

2

Hi! I am so excited to be working on this project along side all of you! My team at UMBC is working on creating an Dance History 1: Cultural and Classical Forms OER Course. Our team members are: myself, Adjunct II faculty in Dance; Erin Durham Wright, Dance Subject Librarian at the AOK Library; Susan Biro, Manager of Instructional Technology; Josh Abrams, Instructional Design Specialist; Carol Hess, Dance Department Chair. I am extremely interested in Open Licensing & Access, DEI pedagogy, De-Colonizing the curriculum and practices, and using practices like ungrading.

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3

Hi! I feel lucky to be with you all here!
I am working on an OER for a second-semester Spanish course that aims to decenter the consumerism and capitalist imaginaries articulated in most of the textbooks. I co-write this project with a faculty and friend, currently at Albright college. We want to focus on the local Latinx community in Baltimore, MD and Reading, PA. Through videos, readings, dialogues, and reflections, we want to encourage critical thinking and transcultural approaches to some topics, like immigration, environment, well-being, and identity.

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4

It was wonderful to meet you all today! Here’s a link to my OER bio that shares my projects (past, present, and future).

5

@jillv your project sounds amazing, and I was so grateful to learn about Open Source dance from you today!

6

@gonzalo.baptista I think you are bringing a much needed perspective to language instruction and look forward to seeing this project take shape!

7

For Session 2, I am excited about Program Level Learning Outcome 3: . Accessible, Equitable, Inclusive learning experiences. It falls in line with research and work I have already been trying to do with my pedagogical practices, and I know I still have alot to learn!

I am also interested in learning about the intersection of Program-level Learning Outcome 5 (Open Approaches and Tools) and Session Outcome 3 (Determine the tools that will enable smooth organization, communication, writing, and publishing within your team). What tools are out there to help us build this OER,? Which are already geared toward open-license, accessibility and non-discrimination. Which ones will allow students and teachers to find and use the material even if they are not already associated with a large institution?

8

Jill, I was so impressed with your focus on accessible, equitable, and inclusive learning experiences in our first meeting. I think you’ll bring a lot to this group! And we will definitely spend some time looking at a variety of tools and resources.

9

Hi all and I’m very excited to be part of the sessions. We are working on student designed and driven Public Health OER (PH-OER) to facilitate global Public Health Research and Practice for Master in Public Health-Practice and Policy (MPH-PHPP), Master in Health Administrations (MHA), and Bachelor in Public Health Science (PHS) students at the School of Public Health (SPHL). The PH-OER will include content modules and experiential-learning project-based team case studies to be implemented with the Global Universitas21 (U21) member institution University of Birmingham (UoB), UK. The PH-OER will provide a learning environment to advance lifelong learning and build deep cross-national connections.

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10

Hi Everyone! I’m excited and nervous to be starting this journey. This project is something that I’ve wanted to do for quite some time. Our team will include me as the primary/lead. The support team includes our OER librarian, eLets (platform specialists), instructional design, and a student who will help research material. The goal of this project is to fill a gap in the literature and materials regarding the understanding and application of cultural practices and rituals in the care of the dying individual as well grief practices of those who are grieving the dying in an undergraduate level Thanatos (Death & Dying) course. The plan is revise a current textbook chapter and to create ancillary materials including interviews, case studies, and self-reflections.

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11

@fouladi it’s exciting to think about how this work will impact not just your own students but also have a global reach through Universitas21. Thank you for sharing this website with me!

12

Patsy, I am so excited to see where this project takes you, and I think it will be a valuable OER for students and instructors in a variety of fields.