Using Open Textbooks to Incorporate Library Resources into Classroom Instruction Anne Hudson, J.D., MLIS, Senior Faculty Research Librarian, DePaul University College of Law Alan Thompson, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Criminal Justice, University of Southern Mississippi

Background – Textbook Issues Academic librarians are charged with supporting the institutional mission of the University, and frequently use their professional development time to learn about issues in higher education. Recently, there has been a flood of information about the high cost of textbooks that may not be covered by financial aid and can range in cost from $50 to $250 per course. Some libraries will place one copy on reserve or refer students to cheaper alternatives, but what if we could offer a free textbook?

Library Open Educational Resource Services Librarians have been actively engaged in supporting faculty open textbook initiatives since 2010. In many instances, librarians have taken the lead in providing professional development workshops to inform faculty about the issues related to open educational resources (OER) and textbooks in particular. Many libraries host an institutional repository where open educational resources and textbooks can be developed and housed.

Open Textbook Resources Many librarians maintain a LibGuide or other online resource with links to the various open access collections that can be reused or remixed to create a textbook tailored to the specific course and campus the library is supporting. (Michele Frasier-Robinson created USM’s) http://libguides.lib.usm.edu/open_educational_resources/ https://openstax.org/ https://textbooks.opensuny.org/ https://open.umn.edu/opentextbooks/

Role of Liaison Librarians All of these methods of support are useful and may lead to the adoption and creation of open educational resources and textbooks. One option that has not been given much attention is how an assigned liaison librarian could add value to the resource and perhaps even participate in the creation of a new open resource or textbook. Liaison librarians are already assigned to faculty to discuss research and instruction issues, why not investigate whether a faculty member would be interested in partnering on the development of course content? Surveyed faculty have expressed an interest in open educational resources, but believe there are not enough quality resources available in their subject areas and, that it would be too time consuming to locate and evaluate resources themselves. Locating and evaluating resources is exactly what academic librarians do!

Open Textbook Program at the University of Southern Mississippi In the Fall of 2015, USM’s Provost and Dean of Libraries agreed to fund 3 faculty members who were willing to adopt, modify, or create an open textbook for use in class. Each faculty member was assigned a liaison librarian to assist them with locating and evaluating resources to incorporate as recommended readings or to add to a bibliography. The 3 assigned liaisons were eager to partner with faculty to save students money and to incorporate library resources into the textbooks. Unfortunately, aside from a few brief conversations, the faculty did not use their assigned librarians, incorporate library resources, or, deposit their final products into the Institutional Repository.

USM’s Second Open Textbook Faculty Cohort To encourage more library involvement in the second cohort, in the Fall of 2016, the Institutional Repository Coordinator, Joshua Cromwell, mandated attendance at several training sessions. Copyright, Open Textbooks, Open Access/Library Resources 3 more faculty members were selected and assigned to 3 liaisons. This time, the faculty members did meet frequently with their liaisons, however only 1 used their liaison as expected.

What worked for the successful partnership? Early and frequent communication that led to a discussion of co-authoring the textbook. A set schedule with tight deadlines over the summer that did not allow for drift or failure. Driven and competitive personalities that were determined to complete the project well, and on time. Partners who were willing to support and encourage each other throughout the process by relying on their senses of humor and mutual respect. The librarian devoured each weekly chapter as though it were a Harry Potter book, and the Professor was amazed at the magic the librarian used to find library and free sources that perfectly matched the information that he was conveying from his own background and experience.

Faculty Program Review The faculty member piloted the textbook in class Fall 2017 and was pleased that the students did not have to pay for a textbook that he would only use parts of and that his new textbook related directly to the content of his lectures and assignments. The faculty member used the textbook again in Spring 2018 and received positive feedback from students. The faculty member was so pleased with the entire process that he successfully applied to be a member of the third year faculty cohort to create a textbook for a different class he teaches. The librarian and Institutional Repository Coordinator look forward to him serving as a mentor and role-model for the other 2 faculty members that have been selected to create open textbooks during the summer of 2018.

How should liaison librarians get started with textbook projects? Read the course syllabus and review the current textbook. Ask questions, what is important to the faculty member? Test the waters by doing some general topic searches and discuss the results. Sign up for current awareness services in their discipline: Review results, send selected materials, and, follow up to determine if they were relevant. You don’t have to be a content expert but to locate relevant resources you do need to take the time to learn the basics.

Process of Creating a Textbook Set up the textbook structure, using a table of contents. Faculty respond well to seeing it as a book so they can just fill in the blanks. Review the draft, compile a bibliography, and, recommend readings that will add value through clarification and additional information. Add videos for interest and currency. Use persistent links to maintain access. Ensure ADA compliance by using tiny URL’s and captioning for videos. Upload into Institutional Repository. Request DOI Continue to monitor current awareness service and send relevant updates.

Marketing the Textbook To thank the Professor for being the first to complete the project, the librarian submitted an announcement to their State Library Association’s News. Jointly submitted 3 successful conference proposals to State, Regional, and National Library Conferences. Co-Presented with the Institutional Repository Coordinator at departments across campus to encourage year 3 submissions. Announced on Social Media. Featured Resource link on Selected Works page

Questions? https://aquila.usm.edu/textbooks/1/ An Introduction to Police Operations and Methods: The Connection to Law and History, R. Alan Thompson, Ph.D. and Anne Hudson, J.D., MLIS. (2017). https://works.bepress.com/anne-hudson/ http://www.misslib.org/page-1807739/5035298 First Open Educational Resource Textbook Deposited into Aquila