Author Message to Instructors

As the proud daughter of Native Mexican immigrants, and being one myself, this unique perspective has significantly influenced not only how I perceive the world but also the education system and access to it. This personal connection means that, as educators, we reach different students, and I kept that in mind when writing this book. My personal experiences have shaped my understanding of what would have supported my educational journey, how I could have been engaged differently, and who was not represented in books. These insights have led me to see myself not just as part of oppressed communities in history but also as part of powerful communities that created and uplifted whole societies throughout history.

This won’t be the first or the last textbook you’ll encounter. However, I hope this book encourages you to contemplate the numerous textbooks used in education, many of which may have contained historical inaccuracies or perpetuated harmful racist stereotypes – an experience I’ve personally encountered. Therefore, I intentionally prioritized diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice in this book, using them as the guiding principles for my writing. I highlight some lesser-known historical figures and groups and clear up some misunderstandings and misinformation that have been widely accepted as fact for many because only a few people from marginalized communities have had the opportunity to have their voices have platforms such as these uplifted. Yet, here I am with this opportunity I never thought I would have. I am trying to amplify the voices of diverse communities. In contrast, giving tools that can be used by students and educators alike, not just in learning settings, but being able to transfer those tools to community work, practicum settings, or internship work is essential. Some of these tools ranged from tools to examine bias in the media to a skills assessment that helps guide conversations around recommended skills for human services providers and how, both as educators and as providers in the field, we can encourage skill building for students starting from inside the classroom and encourage that natural skills that many of them have.

It’s important to note that I, like many of us, am not exempt from faults or errors. However, my journey continues to be influenced by the same systems I strive to change, which is a testament to the potential for change. It’s crucial to start somewhere. This marks the beginning of a transformation in how we approach textbooks and the authors we recognize for their contributions. I wanted this textbook to be different from those I used as a student, the ones I read myself as an educator trying to find something more accurate for my courses with more engaging content and resources that were more relevant to the current day and age and that had historically accurate information but could find nothing that met all of those points, especially at a price point that was accessible to students.

We need books to evolve with us and authors who are practitioners and as diverse as the communities we serve, which needs to be added to what is currently available. The urgency and importance of this evolution cannot be overstated. Sharing current resources in the field and parts of myself will encourage others to be educators and challenge the status quo. Your role in this transformation is crucial. Your actions, voice, and commitment to diversity, inclusion, equity, justice, and education reform will drive this change forward and even move toward decolonizing education altogether.

About Course Packs

This book includes openly licensed course materials, also known as open course packs, for future educators to review, use, and adapt to their own teaching. An open course pack is an aligned and accessible set of openly licensed course materials that fully integrate with the open textbook. Anyone can retain, revise, remix, reuse, and redistribute them. Best of all, future instructors can build on existing learning pathways that are fully aligned with textbook learning outcomes and content.

Oregon instructors designed each course pack in consultation with an instructional designer and, in most cases, revised each course pack based on feedback from Oregon students and an advisory board of workforce members. In each course pack, you will find a complete course map, an instructor guide, and ancillary materials including assignment prompts, rubrics, and suggested activities.

Open course packs from Open Oregon Educational Resources are designed with an equity lens. This means that they center the voices and experiences of underserved student populations. They are designed with equity-minded pedagogies, including Universal Design for Learning (UDL), Transparency in Learning and Teaching (TILT), and Culturally Responsive Teaching (CRT), and Open Educational Practices (OEP).

[Link to course pack site]

Licenses and attributions

Author Message to Instructors by Elizabeth B. Pearce is licensed under CC BY 4.0.

About Course Packs by Open Oregon Educational Resources is licensed under CC BY 4.0.