[Open-education] OER Digest – September 5, 2019

Thu Sep 5 20:04:51 UTC 2019

VOLUME 89

>From Bilan Jama, Creative Commons USA | Volume 89 | September 5, 2019

THE OER DIGEST

Your bi-weekly newsletter for open education updates, opportunities, and
reminders

OPENSTAX COLLABORATION:  It’s a new school year, and OpenStax has announced
<https://openstax.org/press/openstax-partner-schools-expected-save-students-91m-textbooks>their
annual partnership with ten higher education institutions across the
country to provide major savings for their students in the next academic
year. Last year’s OpenStax program cohort saved nearly $17.4 million, and
they’re hoping students this year will be able to save again on textbook
and instructional materials cost with the use of free learning materials
available on OpenStax. This year’s cohort also includes the program’s first
HBCU <https://thecollegepost.com/openstax-free-textbook-initative/>,
Prairie View A&M University.

K-12 CURRICULA: OpenSciEd <https://www.openscied.org/> is rolling out one
of the first full, OER curricula
<https://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2019/08/28/teachers-nationwide-now-have-access-to-open-source.html>
that aligns with the Next Generation Science Standards. A consortium of
creators, led by the nonprofit curriculum developer BSCS Science Learning
Team and the Next Generation Science Storylines Project out of Northwestern
University, began developing OpenSciEd materials in 2017. OpenSciEd ran
field tests with teachers in 10 states during the 2018-19 school year.
Three units are currently available to the public: 6th grade thermal
energy, 7th grade metabolic reactions, and 8th grade sound waves. OpenSciEd
plans to release the remaining units in groups of three every six months,
with the full sequence is projected to be out by winter 2022.

RESOURCE ACCESSIBILITY: The National Federation of the Blind, The National
Federation of the Blind of California, and two students, Roy Payan and
Portia Mason, have won their disability discrimination lawsuit
<https://nfb.org/about-us/press-room/federal-court-rules-favor-blind-students>
against the Los Angeles Community College District (LACCD). LACCD was found
to have violated the students’ rights by failing to provide them with
accessible documents and course materials, failing to provide equal access
to library resources, procuring and using inaccessible educational
technology, and maintaining an inaccessible website. The Federal District
Court for the Central District of California also criticized the use of the
Pearson MyMathLab product at the college.

MERGER OPPOSITION CONTINUES: This week, the Association of Public and Land
Grant Universities (APLU) became the first major higher education
association to take a position on the Cengage / McGraw-Hill merger
<https://www.insidehighered.com/quicktakes/2019/09/04/aplu-opposes-cengage-mcgraw-hill-merger>.
In a letter to Assistant Attorney General Makan Delrahim
<https://www.aplu.org/members/councils/governmental-affairs/CGA-library/aplu-letter-to-doj-on-proposed-cengage-mcgraw-hill-merger/file>,
APLU President Peter McPherson urged
<https://twitter.com/APLU_News/status/1168962341263818754> to the
Department of Justice to block the merger on the grounds that it will
further reduce competition, disincentivize innovation, and raise textbook
prices for students.

OPEN CONNECTIONS

Conferences, jobs, and other OER-related opportunities

REGISTER NOW (AND WE MEAN NOW!!): Early bird registration
<https://openedconference.org/2019/registration/> for the 2019 Open
Education Conference (October 29-November 1 in Phoenix, Arizona) ends
TOMORROW September 6. Standard registration goes up $150 after that date.

REGISTER NOW: Only a few tickets are left for the fall Creative Commons
Certificate Course <https://us.e-activist.com/page/7190/-/1>, an in-depth
course about CC licenses, open practices and the ethos of the Commons. The
course, which starts September 23rd, is composed of readings, quizzes,
discussions and practical exercises to develop learners’ open skills.

JOB OPPORTUNITY: Anne Arundel Community College is searching for an Open
Education Resources (OER) Specialist to join their staff. Applications are
due September 13- click here
<https://aacc.hiretouch.com/position-details?jobID=562&job=open-education-resources-oer-specialist>
to read more about the position.

JOB OPPORTUNITY: Hunter College CUNY is searching for an Assistant
Professor (Librarian) - Open Educational Resources (OER) Librarian to join
the faculty - applications are open until the position is filled. Click here
<https://cuny.jobs/new-york-ny/assistant-professor-librarian-open-educational-resources-oer-librarian/38005398585B449B9D6EF0DC92058785/job/>
to read more about the position.

CALL FOR PAPERS: The international LINQ 2019 Conference is now accepting
scientific papers <http://2019.learning-innovations.eu/call-for-papers> on
innovative learning and education in schools, universities and lifelong
learning. Researchers and practitioners must submit an abstract of their
planned paper in the conference submission system EasyChair until September
30. The deadline for full paper submissions is on October 10.

STORIES FROM THE FIELD

Quick snapshots of those making change on the ground level, and those
impacted

FROM CONNECTICUT: The state commission is looking to unite K-12 and higher
education by sharing open educational resources at all levels, from local
school districts through state universities and colleges. The state plans
to create a technology platform for sharing curriculum materials across
district and state lines.“The idea is that we would have one big repository
or index of materials from K-12 and higher ed,” said executive director of
the Connecticut Commission for Educational Technology, Doug Casey. “In
speaking with some of the folks in secondary education and higher ed, they
are excited about that.” Read more >>
<https://www.the74million.org/article/connecticut-one-of-20-states-leading-the-charge-on-creating-open-education-resources-that-stretch-from-k-12-to-college/>

FROM IDAHO:  Boise State’s support of OER is helping drive down textbook
costs for students. This academic year, 16 new OER projects chosen from 33
applications from faculty members will begin on campus due to grants from
the Idaho State Board of Education and the Office of the Provost. The
evolution of faculty practice toward novel approaches to teaching and
learning – OER is just one example – needs to be a bottom-up process with
appropriate support,” said Interim Provost Tony Roark. Read more >>
<https://www.boisestate.edu/news/2019/08/22/an-even-playing-field-for-all-boise-state-promotes-open-educational-resources/>

FROM NORTH CAROLINA:  Open educational resources are changing online
education and saving students money at Wake Tech Community College. It is
estimated that $360,000 was saved by using a combination of streaming video
and OER is giving more students access to introductory courses. Laila
Shahid-El, a grant coordinator for the college says that, “We’re looking at
expanding more OER resources as well, because that’s something that can
have a real impact on what students are able to do.” Read more >>
<https://edscoop.com/video/oer-cost-savings-wake-tech-community-college/>

HOT OFF THE PRESS

Each edition, we highlight an interesting, new, openly-licensed resource

The EL Toolkit <https://www.eltoolkit.ca/> provides information, examples,
and templates for designing, delivering, facilitating, and evaluating
experiential learning (EL) in post-secondary education. The resource also
gives answers to EL-related questions commonly asked by faculty, academic
leaders, and community or industry partners. This project is a
collaboration between Niagara College Canada, Georgian College, and Brock
University.

WEIGH IN

Great reads to repost or share and interesting discussions to consider

Great to Share >>

Three ways students are saving money on textbooks
<https://www.therolladailynews.com/news/20190820/three-ways-students-are-saving-money-on-textbooks>
| The Rolla Daily News

Open Your Mind to Open Education Resources
<https://blogs.missouristate.edu/assessment/2019/07/31/open-your-mind-to-open-education-resources/>
| Amanda Hadlock

Interesting to Consider >>

Expanding the Scope: Illustrating the Impact of OER
<https://sparcopen.org/news/2019/expanding-the-scope-illustrating-the-impact-of-oer/>
| SPARC

Opinion | Expand the use of OERs
<https://pittnews.com/article/149842/opinions/opinion-expand-the-use-of-oers/>
| The Pitt News

Student leaders seek DOJ intervention in textbook company merger
<https://www.kstatecollegian.com/2019/08/26/student-leaders-seek-doj-intervention-in-textbook-company-merger/>
| The Collegian

Advocates Warn About a Potential ‘Facebook of Higher Education’ with
Mcgraw-Hill Cengage Merger
<https://news.elearninginside.com/advocates-warn-about-a-potential-facebook-of-higher-education-with-mcgraw-hill-cengage-merger-data-collection/>
| eLearningInside

Have suggestions for the next edition? Let us know at oerdigest at gmail.com,
or tweet us @OERdigest <https://twitter.com/oerdigest>.

The OER Digest is a public newsletter distributed to a broad group of
stakeholders across the higher education community. You can join the open
Google Group or check out the distribution list here
<https://groups.google.com/forum/#!forum/oerdigest>.
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