Higher Education Faculty Perceptions of Open Textbook Adoption

The high cost of tuition and textbooks can have a negative impact on potential students from lower socioeconomic backgrounds. Open Educational Resources (OER) offers students a way to save educational costs while utilizing high-quality open textbooks. Up until now, there have been few studies focused on a specific provider of open textbooks. This study investigates open textbooks provided by OpenStax. Specifically, this study uses the COUP framework to examine: (1) cost reduction, (2) outcomes, (3) uses, and (4) the faculty perceptions of the quality of OpenStax textbooks. Additionally, we expanded the framework to address (5) the relationship between the perceived quality of the OpenStax textbook and the faculty perception of student performance, (6) the faculty’s intention to continue to adopt OpenStax textbooks, and (7) the perceived importance of accessibility to faculty who use OpenStax textbooks. Overall, the findings suggest that a significant amount of financial savings and a number of pedagogical shifts can be supported by the use of OpenStax textbooks

Investigation of the Electrodeposition Parameters on the Coating Process on Open Porous Media

Porous materials such as bones, sponges or cork are used in nature due to their light weight. Metal foams with stochastically distributed pores are such a porous bionic material based on nature. Their low weight and mechanical properties make them perfect for use in aerospace, automotive and building construction industry. To improve the mechanical properties, hybrid metal foams are produced consisting of a substrate foam with a coating applied by electrodeposition. An electrochemical coating cell consists of a positively charged anode and a negatively charged cathode. The metal of the anode is oxidised to a positively charged cation and electrons. The cation moves through the electrolyte to the cathode, where it is reduced back to the metal and electrons are consumed. Due to this process the cathode is coated with the anode material. The mass transport during the electroplating process can be divided into four parts: Convection, diffusion, migration and reaction. Convection is a forced flow, e.g. by pumping. Diffusion describes the movement caused by concentration gradients and the migration is the movement by an electric field. Reaction is the ion consumption at the cathode during the electrodeposition process and is therefore called sink. During the electrodeposition process, coating thickness inhomogeneities occur due to mass transport limitations [2,4] and lead to non‐uniform mechanical properties within the coated foams. These inhomogeneties motivate an investigation of the electrodeposition process and its parameters

Strategic Implementation of Open Educational Resources in Higher Education Institutions

Higher education institutions have been playing a pivotal role in the emergence and elaboration of the Open Educational Resources (OER) movement. Initially, pioneering institutions such as the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have led the conceptualization of OER, providing models of sustainable initiatives. Following the forerunners, many other institutions started their own OER initiatives to help achieve affordable and equal education. Unfortunately, however, several OER initiatives have experienced failed efforts, making minimal impact. This article studies previous OER efforts and articulates the process, principles, and anticipated outcomes based on critical lessons learned from these higher education institutions. Informed by a review of the literature related to organizational innovation, change management, and OER implementations, the authors provide a systematic set of guidelines for developing an implementation model for institutional OER initiatives

Using the Stated Preference Choice Method to Inform the Initial Design of a PubliclyFunded Tourism Attraction

Publicly funded capital investments for tourism attractions, if designed and developed in ways that fail to appeal to enough of a potential market, may burden host communities by requiring greater than expected tax contributions toward operating costs, drawing resources away from other public needs and reducing support for future projects. This study uses the stated preference choice method to examine potential user preferences for a publicly funded off-road vehicle park. Results will inform the design of the park in an effort to capture as much of the potential market as possible

Work-related correlates of occupational sitting in a diverse sample of employees in Midwest metropolitan cities

The worksite serves as an ideal setting to reduce sedentary time. Yet little research has focused on occupational sitting, and few have considered factors beyond the personal or socio-demographic level. The current study i) examined variation in occupational sitting across different occupations, ii) explored whether worksite level factors (e.g., employer size, worksite supports and policies) may be associated with occupational sitting. Between 2012 and 2013, participants residing in four Missouri metropolitan areas were interviewed via telephone and provided information on socio-demographic characteristics, schedule flexibility, occupation, work related factors, and worksite supports and policies. Occupational sitting was self-reported (daily minutes spent sitting at work), and dichotomized. Occupation-stratified analyses were conducted to identify correlates of occupational sitting using multiple logistic regressions. A total of 1668 participants provided completed data. Those employed in business and office/administrative support spent more daily occupational sitting time (median 330 min) compared to service and blue collar employees (median 30 min). Few worksite supports and policies were sitting specific, yet factors such as having a full-time job, larger employer size, schedule flexibility, and stair prompt signage were associated with occupational sitting. For example, larger employer size was associated with higher occupational sitting in health care, education/professional, and service occupations. Work-related factors, worksite supports and policies are associated with occupational sitting. The pattern of association varies among different occupation groups. This exploratory work adds to the body of research on worksite level correlates of occupational sitting. This may provide information on priority venues for targeting highly sedentary occupation groups