Reflections on “Open at the Margins: Critical Perspective on Open Education”

I do a short writing assignment every semester in my “Intro Seminar to Instructional Design and Technology course.” The main purpose of the assignment is to expose students to diverse topics in the instructional design field, to share an open access book with them (so that they can have as a future reference), and to assess their writing abilities (in order to provide support or share resources when needed).

Last semester, the students read “Foundations of Learning and Instructional Design Technology” and they shared wonderful reflections from the various topics covered in the book. This semester the open access book I shared with my students was “Open at the Margins: Critical Perspectives in Open Education.”

The assignment is the following:

• Please select ONE chapter of the book “Open at the Margins: Critical Perspectives on Open Education“
• Write a reflection on the chapter you read
• The paper should be:
  • MS Word document
  • 12 point font: Calibri or Times New Roman
  • Two-pages maximum
  • Include the title of the chapter you read in the first paragraph
  • If you use additional references, please include a reference list at the end (otherwise, you do not need to include references)
  • Use the submission link provided in the next Module [Nov. 2] to submit your reflection

Some of the chapters that the students reflected on this term included:

• “What Open Education Taught Me“
• “Open as in Dangerous“
• “Open Education, Open Questions“
• “Antigonish 2.0: A Way for Higher Ed to Help Save the Web“
• “Open Education in Palestine: A Tool for Liberation“
• “Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Open Research and Education“
• “Open As A Set Of Values, Not A Destination“

There are so many great reflections this semester. One of the main takeaways was “openness as more than just textbooks and access but as a way of to improve our practice, sharing, and collaborating.” The chapter “Open Education in Palestine: A tool for Liberation” was selected by three different students and “Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Open Research and Education” was selected by two students. Clearly, the topics/titles peaked the students’ interest.

Next week, I will ask the students if it is okay to share some of their reflections. Happy Friday!