Using WordPress to Adapt OER into an Open, Online Text …and a Few Collateral Benefits

Using WordPress to Adapt OER into an Open, Online Text

…and a Few Collateral Benefits

The course is…

• A typical first-year English composition course

• Required by all degree programs and many diplomas

• Assigning an academic writing handbook is a requirement of the curriculum

• Approximately125 sections offered/year• 25 students/section• Approximately 3125 students/year

KWANTLEN PRESENTATIONS

Commercial Writing Textbooks…• In any given semester, the assigned

commercial writing texts for ENGL 1100 range in price from $45.00 to $115.00

• Most are approximately $90

• Mine was $55


Why not open?

The literature indicates that faculty don’t adopt open textbooks because…

• Time constraints• Concerns regarding quality of available texts• Concerns regarding technological proficiency• Concerns about copyright issues• Desire for students to engage with printed

text and write in the margins (Harley, 2009)• Relationship with publisher’s representative


My own concerns…

• Time• Relationship with publisher’s

representative• Loss of “gateway drug” (Jhangiani,

2015)—an interactive companion site coupled with $55 writing textbook


Available Open Writing Texts…

• Writing for Success by Scott McLean• Writers’ Handbook

But I also wanted to incorporate OER—particularly short videos and interactive tutorials—from other sites, such as OWL at Purdue, KPU library tutorials, Hunter tutorials, etc.


WordPress as a CMS…

• It’s free!• It’s intuitive• Students are familiar with WP format

and can easily navigate the site (because they work on their own WP sites in small writing communities)

• ENGL 1100 Open Online Text: https://hancocksengl1100text.wordpress.com/


https://hancocksengl1100text.wordpress.com/



Positive Student Response…

Fall, 2014: informal survey of 40 students:• 21 preferred the online textbook because it was

free, easily accessible, and included videos and tutorials

• 6 preferred it because it was free• 3 preferred it because of accessibility• 2 preferred it because of videos & tutorials• 8 would have liked the option to buy a print copy• 0 reported a preference for a commercial

textbook


Collateral Benefits…

Surprisingly…Time: • while the initial time commitment was

a bit daunting, the ability to control the CMS now saves hours of time in terms of student issues registering for and navigating commercial companion site



Access:

• no issues with bookstore running out of text; • students have immediate access;• with commercial site, students have access

for a limited period; with open writing text, students have access throughout their degree program (thus, I can refer students in other courses to my open, online writing text)



Continuous Evolution of Material:

• for example, when the Modern Language Association changes documentation rules, I can make an immediate change in the online text;

• can add new OER



Student Participation in “Knowledge Creation”:

• students are invited to participate by sending links to any appropriate OER they discover



Easy Linking:

• Can easily link to specific lessons from course site (not possible with commercial site)

• In student feedback, can easily link to specific lessons appropriate to individual student needs (e.g., problems with run-on sentences, etc.)


Education

Using WordPress to Adapt OER into an Open, Online Text …and a Few Collateral Benefits