Culturally responsive writing
Students need to see themselves in their course materials. This increases their sense of belonging with can improve persistence rates, especially among minoritized or lower socio-economic status students. One of the benefits of an OER is that you can improve the sense of belonging among all students by allowing them to see themselves in the course materials. You can change an OER to reflect your student population and cultural circumstances better. This requires some thought and preparation and needs to be integrated into your writing process from the very beginning.
Before you begin writing, please watch this video on culturally responsive writing presented by Jess Brooks and Cara Lee from Portland Community College.
Suggested Readings
Woodley, X. M., Hernandez, C., Parra, J., & Negash, B. (2017). Celebrating Difference: Best Practices in Culturally Responsive Teaching Online. Tech Trends, 61(10), 470-478. doi:10.1007/s11528-017-0207-z
Garth-McCullough, R. & Sebastian, R. (November 18, 2020) Using open educational resources to create a culturally relevant classroom
Muñiz, J. (September 23, 2020). Culturally Responsive Teaching: A Reflection Guide. New America.
