Wayde Oshiro

17
Mar
2022

Botany in Hawaiʻi is the 1,000th title in the Open Textbook Library

Botany in Hawaiʻi, a textbook authored by Leeward Community College Assistant Professor Daniela Dutra Elliott and Lecturer Paula Mejia Velasquez was selected as the 1,000th title added to the Open Textbook Library, a highly regarded and popular website for open educational resources (OER). 

Each title in the Open Textbook Library has undergone a review process before inclusion in the collection. The addition of the 1,000th title is a significant milestone for the Library as it celebrates its 10th anniversary in 2022. The selection of Botany in Hawaiʻi for this honor is a reflection of the quality of this textbook and the uniqueness of its content. 

The University of Hawaiʻi System is a consortial member of the Open Education Network, the organization managing the Open Textbook Library. The Network and its community of members across the US, Canada, and Australia have played an important role in the UH OER initiative through training opportunities, shared resources, and shared strategies, all of which have helped build our capacity to support local adoption, modification, and creation of OER like Botany in Hawaiʻi. 

Open Education Network press release

Daniela’s and Paula’s OER Journey for Botany in Hawaiʻi EMC blog post

Leeward CC OER Campus Committee website

Posted by Wayde Oshiro in OER
09
Dec
2021

Botany in Hawaii Textbook Available

Congratulations to 2020 Leeward OER Creation Award (LOERCA) winners, Daniela Dutra Elliott and Paula Mejia Velasquez for creating, “Botany in Hawaii,” an OER textbook for Botany and Horticulture that focuses on the endemic flora of Hawai’i, where botany is bridged with the unique climate and geography of the islands. This textbook was created on the LibreTexts platform and will be used by Leeward students in BOT 101, BOT 130, and HORT 110. This was a tremendous accomplishment including original photos and illustrations. Mahalo to Daniela and Paula for publishing this unique textbook that is truly local and culturally relevant. Read about their OER journey below.

The following excerpts were originally posted in the Leeward CC Educational Media Center blog.

Daniela’s OER journey…

My experience developing OER has changed the way I teach and interact with learning materials. I teach classes in botany and agriculture and finding materials that are relevant for Hawai‘i can be a challenge. Teaching these subjects through local examples and incorporating content relevant to Hawai‘i makes learning more relevant to my students.

I started out by just wanting one of my classes to be textbook cost zero (TXT0), which meant the library purchased an electronic copy of the book I was using that students could access for free. This was the only book available for native Hawaiian plants and ecosystems. The main issue was the language used was not very accessible and most of my students were not using the materials. After attending an OER workshop sponsored by our library I got inspired to give OER a try. [Continue reading…]

Paula’s OER journey…

Creating our Botany OER textbook, “Botany in Hawaii,” has been quite an adventure, one that we hope will provide students with more relatable class materials and access to a more affordable education. In my case, I have converted all my classes to be textbook free for several years now by adopting OER textbooks. I got the inspiration for this from several of the OER workshops offered at Leeward CC. For several years I remixed and modified available OER materials from different sources to tailor them to the specific needs of each one of my classes. Given that there are not many OER Botany textbooks available, at one point I came to the realization that I was creating and modifying a considerable portion of the content instead of just mixing materials. [Continue reading…]

In addition to the LibreTexts platform, “Biology in Hawaii” is available in the UH OER and Leeward CC digital repositories. Learn more about the Leeward CC OER initiative at OER @ Leeward.

Posted by Wayde Oshiro in OER
10
May
2016

Go Open, Go Free Using OER begins May 16 at Leeward

For a second year in a row, the Leeward CC Educational Media Center and the Library are facilitating a week long OER training at the annual Pacific Region Learning Summit on Leeward’s Pearl City campus .  The Go Open, Go Free Using OER track provides faculty with an intensive introduction to OER. Participants learn the benefits of adopting OERs, where to find them, how to license and attribute them, and how to share OERs in the UH OER repository. Throughout the week and beyond, individualized support is provided by Leeward instructional designers and librarians.

The ability to reduce higher education costs for students continues to be the main motivating factor for Leeward CC faculty switching from expensive commercial publisher materials to OERs.  In the process of transitioning to OER, faculty discover the benefits to adoption can go far beyond just the cost savings. The flexibility inherent in OERs offers them an opportunity to transform their teaching and free themselves from the restrictions and limitations of the traditional textbook model. This is the true power and greatest potential of the OER movement today.

Posted by Wayde Oshiro in Leeward, OER
07
Mar
2016

OER and Student Success

Recent studies show that Open Educational Resources (OER) may have an impact on student success. The UHCC has adopted OER as a strategy to support student success by reducing educational costs for students. In step with national trends, a Spring 2015 survey of students at Leeward CC revealed that fifty-five percent of the 987 respondents had chosen, at least once, not to purchase a required textbook due to cost. A 2014 Babson OER report showed that cost is the least important factor when faculty select teaching resources; proven efficacy is the most important factor for faculty.  The report also shows that 73.4% of the faculty feel OER is either superior or equivalent in quality to traditional resources.  Based on recent studies, it appears that OERs have a positive impact on student completion, retention, and achievement.

Kapiolani CC Librarians, Susan Kazama and Sunyeen Pai, and Leeward CC Librarian, Wayde Oshiro, shared the results of recent studies examining the impact of OER and student success with attendees at the 7th Hawaii Strategy Institute on March 4-5 at Kapiolani Community College.   A list of the referenced studies is available at the end of the presentation.

Open Educational Resources and Student Success

HSI_2016_OER_Student_Success_photo

Posted by Wayde Oshiro in Kapiolani, Leeward, OER, Zero Textbook Cost
28
Jan
2016

How OER is saving students money at Leeward CC

Leeward CC starts 2016 with 148 Textbook Cost: $0 classes with a combined enrollment of 2,643 students.   Estimated cost savings for students this semester is $131,334.

A Textbook Cost: $0 designation means that an instructor does not require students in their class to purchase textbooks, supplemental course materials, or access codes.  Faculty teaching a Textbook Cost: $0 class incorporate Open Educational Resources (OERs) and other freely available materials to replace costly commercial textbooks.  Leeward CC faculty use OpenStax and other OERs, library-purchased e-books and streaming videos, faculty-authored materials, and a variety of open web resources to use the Textbook Cost: $0 designation.

The money Leeward CC students are saving through the Textbook Cost: $0 program reduces the overall cost of their education. Students can immediately apply any cost savings towards their living expenses and it reduces the need for part-time jobs or having to work more hours.  Students can even use the savings to help pay for additional classes which potentially reduces time to completion.

Since Leeward CC faculty started replacing commercial textbooks with OERs and zero-cost resources students have saved nearly $300,000!

Leeward CC Textbook Cost: $0 Classes

Leeward CC Student Testimonials and Survey Results

Open Educational Resources @ Leeward CC website

Posted by Wayde Oshiro in Leeward, OER, Student, Zero Textbook Cost
19
Jan
2016

UH Student Caucus supports OER

Student Caucus delegates Kelly Zakimi (UHM-ASUH) and Trong Dang (Leeward CC) recently attended an All Campus Council of Faculty Senate Chairs (ACCFSC) meeting where they shared news on UH System progress and presented a unified student vision for OER.

View presentation via Google Docs https://goo.gl/4ACX7F

Posted by Wayde Oshiro in OER, Student