Abstract
Objective
To determine if student outcomes, usage, perceptions, and engagement differ between
introductory nutrition courses that used an open educational resource (OER) textbook
compared with a traditional textbook.
Design
Cross-sectional.
Setting
College introductory nutrition course.
Participants
Students enrolled in introductory nutrition courses that used a traditional textbook
or an OER textbook.
Intervention
Implementation of an OER textbook in all introductory nutrition courses during 1 semester.
Main Outcome Measure(s)
Usage, perceptions, and engagement with the textbook were evaluated by an online survey.
Student outcome data (eg, grades) were collected from the learning management system
at the end of the semester.
Analysis
Differences in student outcomes, usage, perceptions, and engagement were determined
by t tests. Open-ended responses on textbook likes and dislikes were evaluated by
thematic analysis.
Results
The number of students who completed the introductory nutrition course with a traditional
textbook (n = 346) was higher than those who completed the course with an OER textbook
(n = 311). There was no difference in student outcomes between textbooks. P values for student usage ranged from <.001 to .001, <.001 for engagement, and <.001
to .001 for perception with the OER textbook, with significantly better P values for outcomes than those with the traditional textbook. The $0 cost and place-based
nature were noted as positive attributes of the OER textbook, whereas students appreciated
the format and visual appeal of the traditional textbook.
Conclusions and Implications
Academic performance in introductory nutrition was not affected by an OER textbook.
An OER textbook for introductory nutrition may be an appropriate solution for institutions
seeking to reduce student costs.
Key Words
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Article info
Publication history
Published online: September 13, 2019
Accepted:
August 14,
2019
Footnotes
Conflict of Interest Disclosure: The authors have not stated any conflicts of interest.
Identification
Copyright
© 2019 Society for Nutrition Education and Behavior. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
ScienceDirect
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- CorrigendumJournal of Nutrition Education and BehaviorVol. 52Issue 6
- PreviewThe April 2020 issue of the Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior carried a Research Article titled “Open Educational Resource Textbook Impact on Students in an Introductory Nutrition Course (J Nutr Educ Behav. 2020;52(4):359-368; https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jneb.2019.08.006 ). The third author's surname was misspelled and should be “Tillinghast.” The authors regret this error.
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