Random observation: I have an easier time with online books (single-chapter-per-webpage format) than Kindle. đ¤
Mostly cause it’s easier to build mental models of the chapter spatially on the webpage.
My brain has a very hard time keeping track of information structure on Kindle.â Lavanya (@lavanyaai) July 30, 2019
Open Community: OER Collaboration and Support, 8/1/19, MN Summit on Learning and Technology
Thursday, August 1, 11:30 AM Central Time. We stream our discussion live on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/InforMediaServices/
Zoom Link: https://zoom.us/my/oercollab
Tweet about our session with the hashtag: #oercollab. Please backchannel with us on Twitter: #mnsummit2019
| Define open pedagogy and apply its principles to a classroom scenario in one’s discipline | Discuss communication or project management strategies to make OER (Z-degree) possible |
Identify communities that support OER discovery, development and dissemination on local, state, national or international levels |
https://www.facebook.com/InforMediaServices/videos/476946806185114/?__xts__%5B0%5D=68.ARDx4LM9UdkZeUav-yXCFmBTQJcKnwKqlVQNjjGCly-cCPh72v66BfVd3Jb28oS6PzJ_5YubKGcc7zaAi34jyo-fdb4Mw-APZYbBdOJAGGhcoPWDTX5L8Z_4Yg0dUzzKvzLvktc2i77mg5wOs-665QKeqnU5NHzn7zmj0bBW6dHrFzYVdCCwjv4AhJkY-c5IbsbQCAi_eyDTWqEsT4MI8oWqi2blwiU7ZrctnQDSECdsOyo66gMidflUUQblqLFtWRaDvPrN53Ly0XMpppDt3-YPyRCAAYSoV5KGe1g9BWoaCD_Edbo7WKrbhuXwpdVgOK-3HxIXmJNOx5z_j8OUM4v5r0xcToum&__tn__=-R
Rebecca Koenig â â Jul 25, 2019
a big increase since the fall of 2015, when only 3 percent of students reported downloading free course materials.
That figure includes texts procured legally, like open educational resources (known as OER), and illegally, such as pirated files shared through torrent websites. The most recent data NACS has on the latter behavior is from the fall of 2017, when 4 percent of respondents reported obtaining materials through illegal downloads.
The survey includes responses from nearly 20,000 college students at 41 four-year and two-year institutions across 20 U.S. states and two Canadian provinces.
Pearson announced it will adopt a âdigital firstâ strategy for updating college course materials. And earlier this year, two of the worldâs largest publishers of textbooks, Cengage and McGraw-Hill, announced plans to merge, and plan to offer a subscription-based service that combines their digital libraries in one package. (“oligopoly” – see slide 12 of this presentation to the Bulgarian Library and Information Association, http://blog.stcloudstate.edu/ims/2019/05/14/oer-bulgaria/)
several possible factors influencing falling spending
A third may be the growth of so-called inclusive-access programs. In these deals, colleges order published materials in bulk, then charge students a per-course fee that grants them access to all of the required texts and tools. This approach typically offers students lower prices than they can get at retail stores on new books, but some students complain that it stops them from finding lower prices on their own.
The high price of books was the top reason given by students who decided not to obtain the required texts, but 38 percent said they didnât want them or didnât think theyâd need them.
âStudents want to wait to see if the professor is really going to use it and if itâs really going to be necessary for class,â says Lisa Malat, COO of Barnes & Noble College.
https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2019/07/25/spending-and-costs-textbooks-continue-decrease-according-surveys
Nick Hazelrigg July 25, 2019
According to the survey of more than 20,000 students across 41 institutions conducted by the National Association of College Stores, students on average spent $415 on course materials in the 2018-19 academic year, down from $484 last year. Student spending has declined almost every year in the last decade — in 2008 students spent an average of $700 on course materials.
An internal survey conducted by the textbook retailer Campusbooks.com found the companyâs average textbook prices had fallen 26Â percent in the last two years.
Nicole Allen, director of open education at the Scholarly Publishing and Academic Resources Coalition, said the results are consistent with recent trends in the pricing of course materials.
Textbook giant Pearson announces plans to get rid of editions of its textbooks that students can own, resell, or share: https://t.co/KlvOZU012f
â John Mark Ockerbloom (@JMarkOckerbloom) July 16, 2019
https://www.bbc.com/news/business-48998789
How will Pearson support student-generated content?
(14/n)
â Bryan Alexander (@BryanAlexander) July 16, 2019
From Florida: A bill was recently signed into law creating a training program for university trustees to ensure the costs of university fees, textbooks, and instructional materials are minimized whenever possible. Read more here: https://t.co/KAMMCuJ8TX #highered #textbookbroke
â OER Digest (@OERdigest) July 3, 2019
My new novel is available in the following formats@tomgauld pic.twitter.com/Vnq9HhACBO
â Richard Kadrey (@Richard_Kadrey) July 4, 2019
Some publishers have recently started offering subscription options for textbooks. Take Perlego, a UK-based company which gives users access to a library of content, including digital textbooks. And starting in August 2018, textbook publisher Cengage will let students access all of the companyâs digital higher education materials for $119.99 a semester.
Of the six students we talked to, only one had taken a class that used an Open Educational Resource, or OER in place of a commercial textbook.
Morris had never even heard of OERs, but after she was given a quick definition, she said she wishes sheâd known about them and they seem like they could be beneficial for students if they can find what they need on them.
Abdala said she had never encountered OER in her courses, but she trusts that her professors would vett any materials carefully before assigning them. âBefore I take a class I do research on the faculty,â she says. âAnd if itâs somebody thatâs a good professor, Iâm sure that they would not settle for something that is not good material.â
My new #OER Starter Kit is now live! Primarily intended for users who are entirely new to #OpenEducation, I hope that this handbook can be of use to faculty, staff, and trainers who work with OER.
You can find The OER Starter Kit at https://t.co/99HdtZKAfSâ Abbey Elder (@OpenAccessElder) July 1, 2019