In this activity we are asked to read a blog post by Robin DeRosa then consider how a course we have studied (maybe this one) could use such an approach. What might be the drawbacks and benefits?

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DeRosa (2016) describes the process of creating two OERs (textbooks). The initial motivation was to save students some money from their reading list. The result of the student’s participation in the project has had much greater consequences than saving money.

Textbook 1: Consolidate old Public Domain texts

The first textbook was created in response to an expensive course text which repackaged a lot of freely available source texts. The textbook was built on Pressbooks which is based on WordPress. The text was also processed using hypothes.is. This allows online discursive annotation.

From the coursework I have undertaken so far I think it may be quite difficult to create exactly this kind of completely open, participatory book to accompany the H817 unit.  The main reason for this is the large body of copyrighted work often cited while working through the tasks in the course. Contrast this with the two and three hundred year old texts used for DeRosa’s textbook which are Public Domain which can be freely reproduced. Our module does not have a list of books to purchase so this is not a big motivation.

There were technical challenges for some of the students mentioned by DeRosa. These include lack of access to a computing device and limited digital literacy. This should not be so much of an issue when applied to H817. The online nature of this module and the subject matter would suggest that a certain level of digital literacy on entry will be assumed. The requirements cited by the OU (2020) on the study materials page state that a computing device is required for this module.

I got the impression from DeRosa’s writing that there was an awful lot of time involved in compiling and editing this book. She does admit she had the luxury of paid time to work on this and the help of a group of supportive students willing to work for free (but paid in any case).

Textbook 2: Students create the book

DeRosa goes on to describe the creation of a second book, constructed from student’s own (creative commons licensed) blog postings.  These blog postings are correctly citing sources. This textbook is created by consolidating blog postings from participating students. The book also contains links out to the students’ own websites and e-Portfolios. This allows the subject in hand to be explored in different ways depending on the linked student’s own research and opinions.

This approach could work for H817. As tasks are set in this module we are very often asked to write blog posts as our solutions. The various research methodologies and opinions of the students vary greatly. It goes without saying that someone will have to administer the project which will incur a cost of some description.

It may be technically challenging to manage the volume of contributions. There is already a lot of material to work through in the module so adding such a lot of extra source material and opinion may be off-putting for new students in the module.

On a more positive note the number of past contributors may lead to important discoveries for new students completing the module. Some students, as cohorts come and go, may uncover interesting research which helps subsequent participants to look at the topics in an unexpected way.

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References:

DeRosa R. (2016) ‘My open textbook: pedagogy and practice’ [Online]. Available at: http://robinderosa.net/ uncategorized/ my-open-textbook-pedagogy-and-practice/ (Accessed 12th April 2020).

OU (2020) Study Materials, Available at: http://www.open.ac.uk/postgraduate/modules/h817#study-materials (Accessed: 12th April 2020).