Little Reviews

On “Digital Scholarship Considered: How New Technologies Could Transform Academic Work” by Nick Pearce, Martin Weller, Eileen Scalon, and Melanie Ashleigh

On “Digital Scholarship Considered: How New Technologies Could Transform Academic Work” by Nick Pearce, Martin Weller, Eileen Scalon, and Melanie Ashleigh

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In the article “Digital Scholarship Considered: How New Technologies Could Transform Academic Work” Nick Pearce, Martin Weller, Eileen Scanlon, and Melanie Ashleigh contribute to the conversation around integrating digital technology and higher education. The authors take it as a given that new technology is capable of affecting how academics work, but they are steadfast in their belief that this is not an inevitable outcome of our increasingly networked world. Although I suspect this is a bit of a strawman argument,…

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On “The War on Learning: Gaining Ground in the Digital University,” by Elizabeth Losh

On “The War on Learning: Gaining Ground in the Digital University,” by Elizabeth Losh

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In The War on Learning: Gaining Ground in the Digital University, Elizabeth Losh surveys the current state of networked technology in / and higher education, or as she terms it, the “digital university.” Throughout the book, Losh incorporates various case studies of failed initiatives in this realm, including in terms of behaviour (student, professor, and company), public relations, and outcomes. She highlights situations where professors become Internet sensations over their education performances — either due to their ridiculousness or their…

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On “Interoperability and Retrieval” (UNESCO Curriculum)

On “Interoperability and Retrieval” (UNESCO Curriculum)

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The Open Access for Library Schools curriculum was developed under UNESCO’s Open Access Program. On their website UNESCO writes, “The carefully designed and developed sets of OA curricula for researchers and library and information professionals are based on two needs assessment surveys, and several rounds of face-to-face and online consultations with relevant stakeholders” (n.p.). Here, I’ve scanned through the “Interoperability and Retrieval” module. This module is a rather specialized look at interoperability and retrieval needs and standards for open access…

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On “Open Access Mandates and the ‘Fair Dealing’ Button,” by Arthur Sale, Marc Couture, Eloy Rodrigues, Les Carr, and Stevan Harnad

On “Open Access Mandates and the ‘Fair Dealing’ Button,” by Arthur Sale, Marc Couture, Eloy Rodrigues, Les Carr, and Stevan Harnad

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In “Open Access Mandates and the ‘Fair Dealing’ Button,” Arthur Sale, Marc Couture, Eloy Rodrigues, Les Carr, and Stevan Harnad discuss the provision of a “fair dealing button” on research that is deposited in a funder’s or institution’s repository. The fair dealing button developed out of the longstanding tradition of individuals writing to authors to request a copy of their article. With the fair dealing button, this process is automated. But how does this function connect to the open access…

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On “OA Statement of Commitment for Librarians, Archivists, and PEA”

On “OA Statement of Commitment for Librarians, Archivists, and PEA”

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The University of Victoria’s 2012 “OA Statement of Commitment for Librarians, Archivists, and PEA” is the closest that UVic gets to an official, documented position on open access (OA). Of course, a “statement of commitment” is not a policy nor a mandate. Rather, it is an articulation of goodwill and a recognition of the importance of open access to research and cultural material. It is interesting to note that this statement of commitment — the only of its kind from…

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On MOOCs and Open Education Around the World, edited by Curtis J. Bonk, Mimi M. Lee, Thomas C. Reeves, and Thomas H. Reynolds

On MOOCs and Open Education Around the World, edited by Curtis J. Bonk, Mimi M. Lee, Thomas C. Reeves, and Thomas H. Reynolds

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In MOOCs and Open Education Around the World, editors Curtis J. Bonk, Mimi M. Lee, Thomas C. Reeves, and Thomas H. Reynolds  bring together 29 chapters on Massive Open Online Courses, widely known as “MOOCS.” The collection aims for depth and breadth, and there are many different MOOC and MOOC-like initiatives detailed, as well as a couple of notable alternatives to MOOCs. This collection is situated squarely in the realm of Open Education and its affiliated Open Educational Resources, or…

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On Open Education: A Study in Disruption, by Pauline van Mourik Broekman, Gary Hall, Ted Byfield, Shaun Hides, and Simon Worthington

On Open Education: A Study in Disruption, by Pauline van Mourik Broekman, Gary Hall, Ted Byfield, Shaun Hides, and Simon Worthington

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Open Education: A Study in Disruption is a critical examination of the Open Education trend, with a focus on the United Kingdom. Throughout the book, Pauline van Mourik Broekman, Gary Hall, Ted Byfield, Shaun Hides, and Simon Worthington consider the capitalist model and neoliberal ramifications of Open Education, as well as its creative possibilities. They argue that Open Education has the power to displace mid-sized universities through a process of outsourcing instructional labour; lessening the importance of students being physically…

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On “United Kingdom’s Open Access Policy Urgently Needs a Tweak,” by Stevan Harnad

On “United Kingdom’s Open Access Policy Urgently Needs a Tweak,” by Stevan Harnad

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In “United Kingdom’s Open Access Policy Urgently Needs a Tweak,” Stevan Harnad points out a flaw in the Research Councils UK (RCUK) policy released in 2012 that resolved to make any RCUK-funded research open access within 2 years. The issue, as Harnad sees it, is that the RCUK has agreed to direct more funds to Gold OA (i.e., open access journal publishing) over Green OA (i.e., OA repository deposit). This will not make researchers publish OA, Harnad argues, as it…

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On “Open Access is a Research Community Matter, Not a Publishing Community Matter,” by Stevan Harnad

On “Open Access is a Research Community Matter, Not a Publishing Community Matter,” by Stevan Harnad

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In this short article, Stevan Harnad repeats his argument that Green OA (i.e., depositing research in OA repositories) is the best path toward the widespread adoption and implementation of open access. In “Open Access is a Research Community Matter, Not a Publishing Community Matter,” he aims to convince researchers to self-archive or deposit their own output because publishers do not yet have enough impetus to commit wholly to open access. Further, Harnad argues, “researchers’ institutions and funders need to mandate…

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On “Open Access Towards Bridging the Digital Divide – Policies and Strategies for Developing Countries,” by Allam Ahmed

On “Open Access Towards Bridging the Digital Divide – Policies and Strategies for Developing Countries,” by Allam Ahmed

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It is easy to make the case for open access in North America, where there are coordinated, national efforts to develop technical infrastructure. One of the frustrating things about our current scholarly communication system is that it is still not entirely open access despite the fact that we have the technological capability to create and sustain an OA publishing system. Indeed, we are lucky here in Canada, for many reasons. But a robust, open access-ready technology infrastructure is not the…

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