Peer Review

Open SUNY Textbooks Initiative

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Overview:: Open SUNY Textbooks Initiative (2012) is an open access textbook initiative by the State University of New York (SUNY) libraries and supported by SUNY Innovative Instruction Technology Grants for developing and publishing at least thirty high-quality, cost-effective, college level open textbooks by various faculty authors. Ten open textbooks (Phase 1) are currently availabe for global use by educators and students, with an additional 16 open textbooks (Phase 2) coming soon.
Type of Material:: Open Textbook Platform
Recommended Uses:: Instructors looking for online textbooks for their class can look through this collection and recommend specific textbooks to their students. This material can be used in both formal teaching (in-class, online, hybrid) and self-paced individualized learning.
Technical Requirements:: PDF and ePUB; works with Bowsers: Safari, FIreFox, IE (version 9 and up) and Google Chrome; Dolphin (Android devices); UC Browser (Android Devices)
Identify Major Learning Goals:: This is a collection of and open and free textbooks that can be used in either teaching and learning. They are learning resources.
Target Student Population:: Mostly for college level classes.
Prerequisite Knowledge or Skills:: Reading skills

Rating:
Strengths:: A nice collection of textbooks that immediately grab users' interests, such as Writing in College, Corporate Social Responsibility in the Global Economy, and Foundations of Academic Success: Words of Wisdom. All books are provided in PDF versions for easy download, with one mouse click.
Concerns:: This is a project in process. Some books are not available yet and are marked with Coming Soon.

Rating:
Strengths:: These are eBooks, which can be easier to use than paper books. In addition, they are free.
Concerns:: This is a broad initiative, and to be useful, it would be better to recommend specific textbooks that are open and available on each topic. As the site develops, there will be more than a handful of books to choose from. Instructors will need to keep students focused on some of the books. In addition, this collection is submitted to computer science (CS), but there are not that many books in CS.

Rating:
Strengths:: PDFs of the books can be downloaded with one mouse click, easily accessible. PDF format provides all the conveniences of eBooks. Readers can search the book with keywords and also annotate the books.
Concerns:: Some students might prefer paper books, on which they can mark with a pen. It all depends on the habit of the readers.

Other Issues and Comments:: This is an excellent initiative, and clearly supports the idea of open educational resources. The collection seems limited at the moment. Having more textbooks available will make this more usable.
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