Welcome to the Current Happenings blog! I will be sharing interesting news surrounding open education. This recent listserv post from Kwantlen Polytechnic University gives an important perspective on accessibility and the importance of open licensing:

 

 

I’m excited to share the following new resource: Developing Organizational and Managerial Wisdom – 2nd Edition (Audio plus text version) by Brad Anderson, an audiobook version of an existing OER. This Pressbook embeds audio recordings in each chapter, provides a playlist of all recordings for uninterrupted listening, and provides links to download the audio files.

 

Here’s what Brad had to say about this project:

 

Over the past year, I have realized that most of our students have accessibility issues. Many people’s first reaction to that is doubt, but that, I believe, is because many people still view accessibility through a physical disability lens.                                                        

  

The student working thirty hours a week who must cross two bridges in rush-hour traffic to get to campus has an accessibility issue. So does the student renting a bed in a house with half a dozen roommates and no dedicated workspace, a student caring for a sick family member, one with mental health challenges, or … you get the picture.

 

How many barriers might we remove if we made an audio version of textbooks available they could listen to while stuck in traffic? Universal design for learning (UDL) is about giving students options in accessing course material, empowering them to fit learning into the unique considerations of their lives.

 

A couple of years ago, I created this OER textbook under a Creative Commons licence to reduce barriers to learning. Creating an audio version of that text is a continuation of that effort to reduce barriers.

 

While there were many challenges associated with developing this audiobook, with some creative thinking and advice from one of KPU’s Educational Media Strategists, we were able to overcome them. Going forward, I am excited to encourage other OER authors to consider creating an audiobook versions, as well as streamlining and improving the process.

 

Check back for more Current Happenings!

 

Victoria Peters