-
- Up one level
- Cox Willmers and Masuku, Open Textbook Author Journeys: Internal Conversations and Cycles of Time
Abstract
One of the challenges experienced in South African higher education (HE) is a lack of access to
affordable, appropriate textbooks and other teaching materials that can be legally shared on online
forums and the Internet. There are also increasing calls to address transformation and social justice
globally and in South African HE through curriculum transformation. This article draws on the research
of the Digital Open Textbooks for Development initiative at the University of Cape Town (UCT). It
presents the journeys of four open textbook authors at UCT in relation to the social injustices they
witness in their classrooms. It also makes use of Margaret Archer’s social realist approach to explore
dynamics related to open textbook authors’ agency and ultimate concerns, as well as how their internal
conversations shape their practices and approaches to open textbooks. Open textbooks are framed as a
set of practices that play out in varying cycles of time and hold promise in terms of addressing the need
for greater access and inclusivity in HE.
Keywords: agency, open textbooks, social justice, social realism
- Masuku and Cox, Open textbook authorship, quality assurance and publishing: Social justice models of participatory design, engagement, co-creation and partnership
Abstract
This is a presentation that was given by the DOT4D team as part of the CHED seminar series in June 2022. The presentation demonstrates how academics at UCT are embarking on open textbook initiatives in response to a largely mutual set of social injustices they witness in their classrooms related to affordable access, curriculum transformation and multilingualism. With a focus on student co-creation and inclusion, it presents models that address social (in)justice in the classroom and explores ways in which institutions can address sustainability in order to support open textbook development activity.
- Masuku and Willmers, Sustainable, collaborative models of open textbook production for social justice and student co-creation: Open textbooks at the University of Cape Town
Abstract
This is a workshop presentation by Digital Open Textbooks for Development (DOT4D) initiative members Michelle Willmers and Bianca Masuku at the SASUF Goes Digital Workshop in September 2022. This interactive session provided an overview of open textbook development approaches, focusing on sustainability and collaboration. The workshop session also drew attention to the capacity building and support required at an institutional level to support this work as part of institutional transformation efforts to address social injustice in higher education. This workshop was organized by the SASUF-funded Open Education for Social Justice initiative and was presented in partnership with collaborators from University West and University of Gothenburg.