Catalog

This guide is for faculty authors, librarians, project managers and others who are involved in the production of open textbooks in higher education and K-12. It includes a checklist for getting started, publishing program case studies, textbook organization and elements, writing resources and an overview of useful tools.

Contributors include:

• Karen Bjork, Head of Digital Initiatives, Portland State University Library.
• Caitie Finlayson, Assistant Professor, Department of Geography, University of Mary Washington.
• Dianna Fisher, Director of Open Oregon State.
• Linda Frederiksen, Head of Access Services, Washington State University, Vancouver.
• Ralph Morelli, Professor, Computer Science, Emeritus, Trinity College.
• Shane Nackerud, Technology Lead, Library Initiatives, University of Minnesota Libraries.
• Deb Quentel, Director of Curriculum Development & Associate Counsel, Center for Computer-Assisted Legal Instruction (CALI).
• Cody Taylor, Emerging Technologies Librarian, University of Oklahoma Libraries.
• Anita R. Walz, Open Education, Copyright & Scholarly Communications Librarian, Virginia Tech.

The authors invite the open textbook community to contribute their experience and knowledge for future editions of this guide. If you would like to offer additional case studies, frameworks and examples, please email open@umn.edu. Together we can create a flexible resource to support open textbook creation in a variety of contexts.

 

Open education is at a critical juncture. It has moved on from its northern roots and is increasingly being challenged from its own periphery. At the same time, it finds itself marginalised and under threat in an educational sector infiltrated by corporate interests. However, rather than bunkering down, becoming blinkered or even complacent, the editors of this volume believe that the voices from the periphery should be amplified. This book represents a starting point towards curating and centering marginal voices and non-dominant epistemic stances in open education, an attempt at critical pluriversalism. It is a curated collection of 38 blog posts, lectures, talks, articles, and other informal works contributed by 43 diverse authors/co-authors and published since 2013. Each of these contributions offers a perspective on open education that can be considered marginal and that challenges the dominant hegemony.

The Rebus Guide to Publishing Open Textbooks (So Far) is for anyone thinking about starting an open textbook project. It starts at the beginning of the process, with chapters on project scoping and building a team, and then moves on to content creation and editing, getting feedback and reviews, coordinating release and adoptions, and sustaining the book’s community.

The book is also a work-in-progress, an effort that will evolve and grow over time. Through conversations, use, new writers’ and editors’ contributions, and ongoing reflection and revision, it will reflect our changing perspectives on how and why we make open textbooks. Initiated by Rebus team members Zoe Wake Hyde and Apurva Ashok, the text is the result of innumerable conversations and exchanges within the Rebus Community, representing a wide range of collective knowledge and experience.

Please note those two little words in parentheses in the title: there are plenty of new learnings, knowledge, and reflexive revisions to come! Everyone is therefore invited to become a part of the project and follow its progress, as well as leave feedback, comments, and recommendations for corrections on the Rebus Community platform.

Modifying an Open Textbook: What You Need to Know focuses on the technological aspects of editing open textbooks found in the Open Textbook Library or elsewhere, and will help you assess the effort, expertise, and technical tools needed. In addition, this guide includes step-by-step instructions for importing and editing common open textbook file and platform types. Finally, this guide provides a basic overview of accessibility considerations and general guidance on where to find additional help. Adapted from “6 Steps to modifying an Open Textbook” by Clint Lalonde, CC BY 4.0 International.

A handbook for faculty interested in practicing open pedagogy by involving students in the making of open textbooks, ancillary materials, or other Open Educational Resources. This is a first edition, compiled by Rebus Community, and we welcome feedback and ideas to expand the text.