The Rebus Community has come out with their guide to publishing OER called “The Rebus Guide to Publishing Open Textbooks (so far).” I like the model of the Rebus Community: they are a foundation which means their survival as a business does not depend on the adoption of their methods, platforms, etc. ( or whatever currently passes for “sustainability”). Also, as a foundation, their work won’t be sold to another corporation who will inevitably engage in further “open washing.” I especially appreciate their notes about contributors and participants in open textbook projects:
“In our experience, teams around open textbook or OER projects often also include:
- Project leaders
- Contributors at all scales, be it a person writing five chapters, or someone proofreading just one
- Students (graduate and undergraduate)
- Advisors or some form of wise counsel
- OER champions or advocates
- Institutional supporters, such as instructional designers, OER librarians, CLT staff, etc.
- Interested observers
- Potential adopters
- Community members”
You can read more about this great work from their press release: “The Guide represents an important moment in the evolution of the Rebus Community, a culmination of two years of great, collaborative work. Moving forward, it will serve as a living repository of collective knowledge, equipping those who want to publish open textbooks with the resources they need. Just as the forum and Projects platform provide the tools that can make the community more self-sustaining, the Guide will help build long-term capacity. In turn, we can dedicate more time to refining and extending this infrastructure, and enabling more project teams, anywhere in the world, to create and share OER.”
This is a truly sustainable model: make OER part of the academic practice of the institution. Definitely worth a look for your post-Halloween reading!
