OER-Final

TEXTBOOKS

• Intro to Research Methods in Political Science

  The POWERMUTT (Politically-Oriented, Web-Enhanced Research Methods for Undergraduates - Topics and Tools) Project is a Web site that can serve as a basic on-line textbook for teaching research methods in political science and cognate disciplines.

• National Academies Press Industry and Labor

  All of the books on the National Academies Press site are available as freely downloadable PDFs. Listed price is for delivered paperback copies.

• American Government by Timothy O. Lenz; Mirya Holman

  ISBN: 9781616101633

  Publication Date: 2013-08-16

  From Florida Atlantic university Department of Political Science comes an exciting new book that explores the role of government, politics, and policy ion American lives. Full of real life applications and scenarios, Lenz and Holmans provide a text intended to encourage and enable political thinking (a reflective stance toward the world that helps a person to critically consider and participate in politics). Numerous hyperlinks send students into real world websites for illumination and exploration.

• American Government 2e by OpenStax

  ISBN: 9781938168178

  Publication Date: 2020-01-13

  Designed to meet the scope and sequence requirements of the single-semester American Government course. This title includes innovative features designed to enhance student learning, including Insider Perspective features and a Get Connected module that shows students how they can get engaged in the political process. The book provides an important opportunity for students to learn the core concepts of American Government and understand how those concepts apply to their lives and the world around them.

• American Government and Politics in the Information Age by David Paletz, Diana Owen, Timoth Cook

  ISBN: 9781453314982

  Publication Date: 2011

  In covering American government and politics, our text introduces the intricacies of the Constitution, the complexities of federalism, the meanings of civil liberties, and the conflicts over civil rights;explains how people are socialized to politics, acquire and express opinions, and participate in political life; describes interest groups, political parties, and elections—the intermediaries that link people to government and politics; details the branches of government and how they operate; and shows how policies are made and affect people’s lives.

• Attenuated Democracy by David Hubert

  Publication Date: 2020

  An introduction textbook that covers the purposes, functions, and roles of US politics and government from every level. The text covers the founding of the American government to modern and current movements in ten parts to encompass the information needed for an introductory course.

• History of International Relations by Erik Ringmar

  ISBN: 9781783740246

  Publication Date: 2019

  Existing textbooks on international relations treat history in a cursory fashion and perpetuate a Euro-centric perspective. This textbook pioneers a new approach by historicizing the material traditionally taught in International Relations courses, and by explicitly focusing on non-European cases, debates and issues.
  The volume is divided into three parts. The first part focuses on the international systems that traditionally existed in Europe, East Asia, pre-Columbian Central and South America, Africa and Polynesia. The second part discusses the ways in which these international systems were brought into contact with each other through the agency of Mongols in Central Asia, Arabs in the Mediterranean and the Indian Ocean, Indic and Sinic societies in South East Asia, and the Europeans through their travels and colonial expansion. The concluding section concerns contemporary issues: the processes of decolonization, neo-colonialism and globalization – and their consequences on contemporary society.

VIDEOS

• Films for Action

Films For Action has cataloged over 1,500 of the best films and videos that can be watched free online. These films address social, environmental, and media-related issues.

Literature Resources

• LibreTexts Bookshelf - Literature and Literacy

• Brehe's Grammar Anatomy 
  • This book provides an in-depth look at beginner grammar terms and concepts, providing clear examples with limited technical jargon.
• American English 
  • A resource center for teaching and learning about American English language and culture. Unless a copyright is indicated, information is in the public domain and may be copied and distributed without permission.

Literature & Poetry

• Compact Anthology of World Literature 
  • The emphasis in this anthology is on non-Western and European works, with only the British authors who were the most influential to European and non-Western authors (such as Shakespeare, whose works have influenced authors around the world to the present day).
• Literature for the Humanities 
  • Literature in the Humanities is an introduction to the study of the characteristics, conventions, and socio-historical contexts of the major literary forms, including the analysis and interpretation of literary elements and devices, and the application of literary theory and criticism. This course is designed to encourage a deep appreciation of literature, hone critical thinking skills, and to illustrate the importance of literature as an expression of the human cultural experience.
• Naming the Unnamable: An Approach to Poetry for New Generations 
  • Naming the Unnameable offers practical advice for developing a writing process that is centered on play and supported by an understanding of America’s rich literary traditions. With consideration to the psychology of invention, Evory provides students with exercises aimed to make writing in its early stages a form of play that gives way to more enriching insights through revision, embracing the writing of poetry as both a love of language and a tool that enables us to explore ourselves and better understand the world.

Western Literature

• Western Humanities 1 
  • A selection of readings for a Western Humanities/Western Literature course, including Agamemnon, Ovid's Metamorphoses, Augustine's Confessions, Thomas More's Utopia, and more.
• Literature, the Humanities, & Humanity

  Literature, the Humanities, and Humanity attempts to make the study of literature more than simply another school subject that students have to take. At a time when all subjects seem to be valued only for their testability, this book tries to show the value of reading and studying literature, even earlier literature. It shows students, some of whom will themselves become teachers, that literature actually has something to say to them.

English Literature

• British Literature I: Middle Ages to the Eighteenth Century and Neoclassicism 
  • The University of North Georgia Press and Affordable Learning Georgia bring you British Literature I: From the Middle Ages to Neoclassicism and the Eighteenth Century. Featuring over 50 authors and full texts of their works, this anthology follows the shift of monarchic to parliamentarian rule in Britain, and the heroic epic to the more egalitarian novel as genre.
• British Literature II: Romantic Era to the Twentieth Century and Beyond 
  • Featuring 37 authors and full texts of their works, the selections in this open anthology represent the literature developed within and developing through their respective eras. This completely-open anthology will connect students to the conversation of literature that has captivated readers in the past and still holds us now.
• English Literature: Victorians and Moderns 
  • In addition to providing annotated teaching editions of many of the most frequently-taught classics of Victorian and Modern poetry, fiction and drama, it also provides a series of guided research casebooks which make available numerous published essays from open access books and journals, as well as several reprinted critical essays from established journals.
• The Emergence of Irish Gothic Fiction: History, Origins, Theories 
  • This book provides a robustly theorised and thoroughly historicised account of the ‘beginnings’ of Irish gothic fiction, maps the theoretical terrain covered by other critics, and puts forward a new history of the emergence of the genre in Ireland. The main argument the book makes is that the Irish gothic should be read in the context of the split in Irish Anglican public opinion that opened in the 1750s, and seen as a fictional instrument of liberal Anglican opinion in a changing political landscape.

American Literature

• American Literature I 
  • American Literature I (1650–1860) examines significant literary works of early American and Puritan literature, the Enlightenment, American Romanticism, and pre-Civil War era. The course includes primary texts (many accompanied by video/audio options), historical background, literary criticism and interpretation, and instruction on writing about literature.
• American Literature I: An Anthology of Texts From Early America Through the Civil War 
  • This book offers an anthology of texts that includes letters, journals, poetry, newspaper articles, pamphlets, sermons, narratives, and short fiction written in and about America beginning with collected oral stories from Native American tribes and ending with the poetry of Emily Dickinson. Many major and minor authors are included, providing a sampling of the different styles, topics, cultures, and concerns present during the formation and development of America through the mid-nineteenth century.
• Writing the Nation: A Concise Introduction to American Literature 1865 to Present 
  • A text that surveys key literary movements and the American authors associated with the movement. Topics include late romanticism, realism, naturalism, modernism, and modern literature.

Religion

• Global Citizenship, Cultural Citizenship and World Religions in Religion Education

  Overview: An examination of the reasons for studying religion and religions, and the necessity for educator, student, administrative, or parental involvement in the process of teaching and learning about religious diversity. In this paper, Chidester tests one possible answer to these questions - namely citizenship - and suggests that the study of religion, religions, and religious diversity, can usefully be brought into conversation with recent research on new formations of citizenship.

• Nations under God: The Geopolitics of Faith in the Twenty-First Century

  This edited collection presents a balanced analysis of the multifaceted roles taken on by religions, and religious actors, in global politics. The volume brings together over thirty leading scholars from a variety of disciplines who utilise case studies, empirical investigations, and theoretical examinations to move beyond the simplistic narratives and overly impassioned polemics which swamp the discourse on the subject.
  
  Edited by: Luke M. Herrington, Alasdair McKay & Jeffrey Haynes

• The Originals: Classic Readings in Western Philosophy

  It is important for students not only to get an appreciation and understanding of philosophy but also to be exposed to the very words and ideas of those who have shaped our thinking over the centuries. Accordingly, the title of this collection hints at the facts that these readings are from the original sources and that these philosophers were the originators of many of the issues we still discuss today. Major areas of philosophy covered here are: Ethics, Epistemology, Metaphysics, Philosophy of Religion, Ethics, Socio-Political Philosophy, and finally, Aesthetics.

• Philosophy of Religion

• Read more about Six Ways of Being Religious Six Ways of Being Religious

  The book proposes the hypothesis that six generic ways of being religious may be found in any large-scale religious tradition such as Christianity or Buddhism or Islam or Hinduism: sacred rite, right action, devotion, shamanic mediation, mystical quest, and reasoned inquiry. These are recurrent ways in which, socially and individually, devout members of these traditions take up and appropriate their stories and symbols in order to draw near to, and come into right relationship with, what the traditions attest to be the ultimate reality.
  
  Author: Dale Cannon

• The Sacred and the Sovereign

  This collection features seven articles which tackle the subject of religion and its resurgence in international politics from diverse approaches.
  
  Edited by: Özgür Taşkaya

Philosophy

Repositories & Collections

• Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy

  The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy is a dynamic online encyclopedia published by the Center for the Study of Language and Information at Stanford University.

• Crash Course Philosophy [YouTube]

• Introduction to Philosophy [YouTube]

Introductory Philosophy

• An Introduction to Philosophy 
  • The goal of this text is to present philosophy to newcomers as a living discipline with historical roots. While a few early chapters are historically organized, later chapters are topically organized.
• Introduction to Philosophy: Philosophy of Mind 
  • Introduction to Philosophy: Philosophy of Mind surveys the central themes in philosophy of mind and places them in a historical and contemporary context intended to engage first-time readers in the field. It focuses on debates about the status and character of the mind and its seemingly subjective nature in an apparently more objective world.
• Sapientia: Open Readings in Philosophy 
  • This text is designed for use in an introductory course on philosophy in a college classroom. It is organized into five parts, each for major branches of philosophical inquiry: epistemology, metaphysics, ethics, and political philosophy.

Logic

• forallx: An Introduction to Formal Logic 
  • forallX is an introductory textbook in formal logic. It covers translation, proofs, and formal semantics for sentential and predicate logic. There is no charge to use the book either as a text for a course or for self-directed study, and you are welcome to revise it to fit your needs. It is available as a free download, and you can make hard copies.
• The Open Logic Text 
  • The Open Logic Text is an open-source, modular, collaboratively authored collection of teaching materials for formal (meta)logic and formal methods, starting at an intermediate level (i.e., after an introductory formal logic course). It is aimed at a non-mathematical audience (in particular, students of philosophy and computer science), but is completely rigorous.
• A Concise Introduction to Logic 
  • This text takes the unique approach of teaching logic through intellectual history; the author uses examples from important and celebrated arguments in philosophy to illustrate logical principles.
• Odds & Ends

  This textbook is for introductory philosophy courses on probability and inductive logic. It is based on a typical such course I teach at the University of Toronto, where we offer “Probability & Inductive Logic” in the second year, alongside the usual deductive logic intro.

• Fundamental Methods of Logic 
  • Fundamental Methods of Logic is suitable for a one-semester introduction to logic/critical reasoning course. It covers a variety of topics at an introductory level.
• Carnap: A formal logic framework

  Carnap is a free, interactive, and open software framework written in Haskell for teaching and studying formal logic.

• Problems in Argument Analysis and Evaluation 
  • A new edition of Trudy’s Govier’s seminal volume, "Problems in Argument Analysis and Evaluation." Originally published in 1987, this was a pioneering work that played a major role in establishing argumentation theory as a discipline. Today, it is as relevant to the field as when it first appeared, with discussions of questions and issues that remain central to the study of argument.

Ethics

• Phronesis: An Open Introduction to Ethical Theory with Readings 
  • This OER is a remix of Ethics for A-Level by Mark Dimmok and Andrew Fisher as well as selected chapters from the OER textbook Introduction to Ethics, edited by Noah Levin. Supplementing these chapters is a selection of topical primary readings.
• Introduction to Philosophy: Ethics 
  • Philosophical ethics is the critical examination of these and other concepts central to how we evaluate our own and each others' behavior and choices. This text examines some of the main threads of discussion on these topics that have developed over the last couple of millenia, mostly within the Western cultural tradition.
• Ethics for A-Level 
  • Following the specification requirements of AQA and OCR, the book deals with Normative Ethics, then Metaethics and finally Applied Ethics. So guided by the AQA and OCR exam specifications, you will find various normative theories explained. You will then find those theories applied to real life examples. Sandwiched between these is the Metaethics chapter which asks: “But what is ethical practice?” Helpful student guides are included eithin every chapter including Common Student Mistakes”, “Issues to Consider” and “Key Terminology.”
• Introduction to Ethics: An Open Educational Resource 
  • This book focuses primarily on contemporary moral issues, from those in medical ethics (euthanasia, abortion, etc.) to how we should treat non-human things (like the environment and animals) and issues that affect society as a whole, like technology and immigration. There primary source selections that cover the theories behind the moral principles applied within the book.

Other Topics

• The Originals: Classic Readings in Western Philosophy 
  • It is important for students not only to get an appreciation and understanding of philosophy but also to be exposed to the very words and ideas of those who have shaped our thinking over the centuries.
• Inferring and Explaining

  Inferring and Explaining is a book in practical epistemology. It examines the notion of evidence and assumes that good evidence is the essence of rational thinking. Evidence is the cornerstone of the natural, social, and behavioral sciences. But it is equally central to almost all academic pursuits and, perhaps most importantly, to the basic need to live an intelligent and reflective life.

• Wellbeing, Freedom, & Social Justice 
  • Wellbeing, Freedom and Social Justice: The Capability Approach Re-Examined is both an introduction to the capability approach and a thorough evaluation of the challenges and disputes that have engrossed the scholars who have developed it.
• Modern Philosophy 
  • This is a textbook (or better, a workbook) in modern philosophy. It combines readings from primary sources with two pedagogical tools. Paragraphs in italics introduce figures and texts. Numbered study questions (also in italics) ask students to reconstruct an argument or position from the text, or draw connections among the readings.

FRENCH

• Au Boulot! First-Year French by David Dinneen

  Publication Date: 1995

  "Au boulot! is a two-year college French program consisting of: a textbook, workbook and 21 accompanying audio exercises; as well as a reference grammar, to be used the entire two years. We also insist that our students obtain a fall-sized dictionary, and we recommend the HARPER-COLLINS-ROBERT bilingual New Standard Edition. (Instructors will note in reviewing the materials that we provide vocabulary lists at the ends of chapters, with translations, but no glossary. We have become convinced after years of experience that glossaries are counter-productive. It is vital that students learn to use dictionaries, and the sooner the better.)
  
  In our current program (we have tested this material at the first year and are now testing the second year sequel), we also use a separate reader. The text and workbook are shorter and "lighter" than the average first-year texts have become in recent years, at least in part because we want to provide a core of grammar presentation and exercises, both mechanical and creative, while allowing instructors the flexibility to choose their own reading materials, of which there is a variety of excellent ones available."

• Chapeau! First-Year French

  Publication Date: 1989

  "Chapeau! is a first-year college text. Although it may appear, at first glance, to move very fast and introduce a large amount of material early, the vocabulary and grammatical structures that we expect students to control actively by the end of the year are limited in accord with our notion of a reasonable application of the ACTFL proficiency guidelines. As a result, while some instructors may be surprised at such things as the absence of the possessive pronoun, no insistence on the use of optional subjunctives, and no active treatment of the relative dont, others may be disturbed by what we still include in a first-year text. What we do expect students to acquire (which is quantitatively less than what we present in the text for them to know about), we believe they will acquire well, providing a sound basis for further study (formal or informal) and permitting us to say to them, both during and at the end of the course, "Chapeau!"

• Tout un Monde: An Interdisciplinary Approach to Intermediate French by Alicia Soueid

  Publication Date: 2019

  This book is intended for use with intermediate level college French classes. Its multidisciplinary approach introduces students to topics and vocabulary associated with fields such as medicine, advertising, travel, business, agriculture, and relationships.

• Français Interactif by Karen Kelton; Nancy Guilloteau; Carl Blyth

  ISBN: 9781937963040

  Publication Date: 2006-08-15

  "This textbook of classroom activities and homework accompanies Français interactif. Français interactif, the web-based French program developed and in use at the University of Texas since 2004, and its companion site, Tex's French Grammar (2000)are open access sites, free and open multimedia resources, which require neither password nor fees. Français interactif, used increasingly by students, teachers, and institutions throughout the world, includes 320 videos (American students in France, native French interviews, vocabulary and culture presentation videos) recorded vocabulary lists, phonetic lessons, online grammar lessons (600 pages) with self-correcting exercises and audio dialogues, online grammar tools (verb conjugation reference, verb practice), and diagnostic grammar tests."

• Sons & Lettres: A pronunciation method for intermediate-level French by Stephen Walton, Portland State University Library

  Publication Date: 2018

  "Sons et lettres provides a set of classroom materials to train students to hear and produce the sounds of French and to recognize the regular spellings used to represent those sounds in print. The materials are inspired by a desire to help students feel more confident about their French pronunciation and more at home saying the many French words, familiar and unfamiliar, which they encounter in their studies, in French media and in their travels. In our experience, students are not given sufficient preparation to successfully decipher and pronounce French words. These materials are intended to fill that gap and to clear away the confusion that English speakers often feel when they see French words with seemingly mysterious combinations of letters."

• Liberté, a French textbook

  Liberté, by Gretchen Angelo, is a first-year college French textbook with a true communicative approach.

• Elementary French I, Carnegie Mellon University

  Elementary French I is a carefully sequenced and highly interactive presentation of French language and culture in a media-rich course environment including new video shot in France and Québec with young professional actors. It is designed to be used as a full course of study.

• Elementary French II, Carnegie Mellon University

  Elementary French II is a carefully sequenced and highly interactive presentation of French language and culture in a media-rich course environment including new video shot in France and Québec with young professional actors. It is designed to be used as a full course of study.

GERMAN

• Deutsch Im Blick by Zsuzsanna Abrams

  ISBN: 9781937963019

  Publication Date: 2017

  This textbook is newly revised (Mai 2013) and includes all 10 chapters of Deutsch im Blick. It accompanies http: //coerll.utexas.edu/dib/, the web-based first-year German program developed and in use at the University of Texas since 2008, and its companion site, Grimm Grammar http: //coerll.utexas.edu/gg/. Deutsch im Blick is an open access site with free and open multimedia resources, which requires neither password nor fees. Deutsch im Blick has been funded and created by Liberal Arts Instructional Technology Services at the University of Texas, and is currently supported by COERLL, the Center for Open Educational Resources and Language Learning UT-Austin, and the U.S. Department of Education Fund for the Improvement of Post-Secondary Education (FIPSE Grant P116B070251 & P116Y090057) as an example of the open access initiative.

• A Foundation Course in Reading German by Alan Ng and Dr. Sarah Korpi

  "Guides a learner who has no previous German experience to gain the ability to accurately understand formal written German prose, aided only by a comprehensive dictionary. Specific objectives include:
  Explain enough grammatical and syntactical information about the German language to enable you to read any desired text with the aid of a dictionary.
  Explain elements of word formation to accelerate the process of learning vocabulary.
  Lead the reader through practice in small-scale translation as the necessary foundation for dealing with more complex readings."

• Das Auto: A German Reader by Markus Lham

  Publication Date: 2013

  "This is a free textbook that is offered by Amazon for reading on a Kindle. Anybody can read Kindle books—even without a Kindle device—with the free Kindle app for smartphones and tablets. Download the app for your device and start reading for free.
  
  'The best way to learn a foreign language is to start reading it! Each book in the 'German Reader' series comprises three original German short stories, with English translations placed next to the German text, so that you can translate the stories as you read. Perhaps more importantly, all the stories are page-turners that are guaranteed to leave you on the edge of your seat - learning a foreign language has never been so enjoyable!'"

• Deutsch im Blick

  This textbook is newly revised (Mai 2013) and includes all 10 chapters of Deutsch im Blick. Deutsch im Blick is the web-based first-year German program developed and in use at the University of Texas. It is an open access site with free and open multimedia resources, which requires neither password nor fees.

SPANISH

• Acceso

Acceso is intended as a complete curriculum for intermediate-level learners of Spanish but it can certainly be used as a foundational text or as a supplement to other intermediate and advanced curricula. The materials on this website are provided freely to the public as an Open Educational Resource (OER) in support of broader educational affordability and access. Instructors may also request free access to detailed lesson plans, rubrics for the evaluation of student work, and reliable instruments for measuring student progress and learning outcomes.

• First Year Spanish 1 
  • From Mt Hood Community College, a free introductory Spanish textbook for undergraduates.
• Mi idioma, mi comunidad: español para bilingües 
  • This is an open-access textbook for Heritage Language Leaners of Spanish that centers on students’ experiences with language, identity, and belonging in the Midwest through real-world applications. It uses a project-based approach that outlines how students engage in real-life applications by exploring culturally relevant topics in language use, arts, festivals, food, ethnography, oral history, digital lives, and the university.
• Online Spanish Textbook 
  • Spanish 1050 Online Textbook contains 5 major units, each with sections on grammar, vocabulary, culture, and discussion topics.
• La lingüística hispánica: Una introducción 
  • This book, still in development, is aimed at Spanish students at American universities and is intended to provide a short and simple introduction to Hispanic linguistics. It includes basic concepts of linguistics, provides essays that cover topics of social interest connecting linguistics with daily life, and exercises to practice the concepts.
• SpInTX Videos

  The SpinTX video archive provides access to selected video clips and transcripts from the Spanish in Texas Corpus, a collection of video interviews with bilingual Spanish speakers in Texas.

• SpInTX Grammar

  Spanish Grammar in Context contains detailed grammar explanations of the Spanish language. Unlike traditional reference grammars, each topic is explained using authentic video examples from the Spanish in Texas project. Accompanying practice quizzes are available on an open Canvas course site.

• Spanish Wikibook

  This Wikibook aims to teach the Spanish language from scratch. It will cover all of the major grammar rules, moving slowly and offering exercises and plenty of examples. It's not all grammar though, as it offers vocabulary and phrases too, appealing to all learners.