Faculty Interview Diane Duffin-UNK
Jane Petersen
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03/29/2022
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Dr. Diane Duffin, Political Science
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- [00:00:04.200]Well, today I have Dr.
- [00:00:05.600]Diane Duffin.
- [00:00:06.900]She is a UNK political science faculty
- [00:00:09.800]member here, and I have to share something about Diane.
- [00:00:13.100]Diane, well UNK started
- [00:00:16.400]the OER program in 2015 And Diane phrased it just right.
- [00:00:21.566]We were the pioneers for UNK
- [00:00:24.833]for OER for the University of Nebraska.
- [00:00:28.300]And so Diane was just so happy to hear you and hear your input
- [00:00:31.766]from the very early days.
- [00:00:33.933]And you have continued to teach OER and saving our students
- [00:00:37.933]hundreds of dollars in their in their textbook costs, etc..
- [00:00:41.500]But we want to learn about your experience in your classroom with OER.
- [00:00:46.566]So my first question, because you jumped in
- [00:00:49.066]right away in 2015 as the pioneer.
- [00:00:52.533]What was your why in OER
- [00:00:55.800]I think about that almost every semester and I think if I were to distill it
- [00:01:01.200]to a short answer, I can give you a short answer or a very, very long one.
- [00:01:04.400]The shortest answer is this.
- [00:01:05.433]I don't like textbooks either. Right.
- [00:01:07.400]I teach introduction to American politics and of you know, I've been to that point,
- [00:01:12.733]I'd been teaching for 20 years and more before we started this.
- [00:01:16.033]So I'd used plenty of textbooks.
- [00:01:17.833]I had read plenty of textbooks, and I knew that I didn't like reading them. And
- [00:01:23.966]if I didn't like reading them, the students weren't
- [00:01:25.866]going to like reading them and textbooks have their place, don't get me wrong.
- [00:01:30.033]But what you lose in
- [00:01:33.966]a textbook is you've got someone else in control of your course agenda.
- [00:01:37.600]If you make the students
- [00:01:38.633]buy the book and pay the money, then they should get their money's worth.
- [00:01:43.100]And so you should teach out of that book.
- [00:01:45.400]And in American government anyway, the textbooks are fairly
- [00:01:49.000]broad and shallow on most topics.
- [00:01:52.466]It's a survey course, as it should be
- [00:01:56.200]and they cover a lot of topics and not particular depth,
- [00:01:58.866]and not all of them are as interesting or as relevant to today's students.
- [00:02:03.933]So I was looking for a way to make the course more relevant because,
- [00:02:07.733]you know, I feel pretty strongly about about democracy generally and wanting
- [00:02:11.400]students to be engaged in their democracy and making it continually better.
- [00:02:16.600]So I saw the OER as an opportunity to kind of pare out of the course
- [00:02:20.833]the things that didn't seem relevant to students
- [00:02:24.533]and that didn't get them excited.
- [00:02:28.200]And, you know, make no mistake about it, when you when you go to an OER away
- [00:02:32.500]from a textbook into an OER you're going to inevitably find yourself
- [00:02:36.466]just not covering everything that the textbook covers.
- [00:02:40.000]And I think that's fine because I earned my Ph.D.
- [00:02:42.766]in my discipline to make me an expert on what people first
- [00:02:47.566]approaching the subject need to know and could find useful.
- [00:02:50.700]And the OER
- [00:02:52.066]also this is
- [00:02:52.666]part of the second part of my answer is it allows me to rely on my knowledge
- [00:02:55.766]of my discipline to find the things that students can engage with
- [00:03:00.600]and give them a deeper content knowledge about fewer things.
- [00:03:05.200]What I love about what you're sharing there also about the OER
- [00:03:08.633]is that in your answer, I feel that
- [00:03:13.166]you were contemplating this
- [00:03:14.700]even before we first kind of probably sent out this
- [00:03:18.500]announcement that we were looking for pioneers
- [00:03:21.666]to start an OER program and teach
- [00:03:24.566]an OER at the University of Nebraska, Kearney in 2015.
- [00:03:28.100]I just feel was that sort of you were kind of wrestling but didn't maybe know?
- [00:03:32.500]Well, yes.
- [00:03:34.166]Absolutely. And part of that was contextual.
- [00:03:36.466]I was at that time teaching sections of that
- [00:03:39.566]course that were just for students and teacher education.
- [00:03:42.966]So I wanted to be able to tailor the course a little bit
- [00:03:45.700]more to the kinds of things
- [00:03:47.300]people in the education field would need to know about public policy
- [00:03:50.500]and education policy and how it gets made and how they can influence it.
- [00:03:53.500]And there are no textbooks on that. Exactly.
- [00:03:55.633]So I was looking for a way to to tailor a course to a
- [00:03:59.666]particular groups of students.
- [00:04:01.266]But it turns out that all of my sections of introduction to American politics,
- [00:04:05.666]you know, the teacher had ones and the ones
- [00:04:07.233]for the general student population, they just work better this way.
- [00:04:11.266]I love that. So when when you
- [00:04:15.466]converted your first course to. OER.
- [00:04:18.600]And that's been a long time ago.
- [00:04:19.933]So I know there's there is you've taught for many years on OER.
- [00:04:23.966]So maybe just kind of general through the years.
- [00:04:26.433]But what we're looking at is to inspire other faculty about what it takes, etc.
- [00:04:32.700]So if you kind of
- [00:04:33.300]go back to those early days, but then you know how you've transitioned
- [00:04:37.200]and continued to do other courses in OER, etc..
- [00:04:40.966]So my question is, what's surprised you when converting
- [00:04:45.166]to OER appreciating that you want to inspire people to do this.
- [00:04:48.800]I also don't want to give an unvarnished
- [00:04:51.666]view of it
- [00:04:55.866]One of the things that surprised me was
- [00:04:58.166]it was a little more difficult than I anticipated picking materials
- [00:05:01.733]because you know, an intro textbook is pitched at the introductory level.
- [00:05:05.600]It assumes the students don't know much.
- [00:05:07.700]So there's there's one level there.
- [00:05:09.566]And then in your academic discipline, there's the professional writing,
- [00:05:13.966]and you can't teach that to intro students.
- [00:05:16.833]So in
- [00:05:17.500]my field, you've got a whole body of work where you the knowledge is there
- [00:05:21.766]and you have to figure out
- [00:05:22.333]how to distill that knowledge that's delivered for a professional audience
- [00:05:26.366]in a voice that beginning undergraduates can understand.
- [00:05:30.800]And in the field of American politics generally,
- [00:05:33.266]there's just a whole lot of content.
- [00:05:35.466]I mean, just look at the information universe around politics in America today.
- [00:05:39.533]Right.
- [00:05:40.300]Most of it is not theoretic or deep enough
- [00:05:45.333]that you would want to teach at a college course.
- [00:05:48.800]So the hunt for materials was harder than I thought it was going to be.
- [00:05:52.333]And I'm continuing to search.
- [00:05:55.166]And generally what what I find over the years
- [00:05:57.100]is that if I find a piece that works right the students respond to it,
- [00:06:01.966]they learn from it, they retain it, they can apply it to new sets of facts.
- [00:06:06.133]I'll keep that piece.
- [00:06:07.533]But if the piece kind of fails on any of those
- [00:06:11.633]you know, informal measures that I have, then I think next semester
- [00:06:14.733]I need to find something else to teach that content.
- [00:06:16.733]So I will go looking sometimes I will find something better.
- [00:06:19.866]Sometimes I have to stick with the thing that's good but not great
- [00:06:24.566]and continue the search, you know, talking, visiting with you, Diane.
- [00:06:28.466]I'm just going to add another question that I remember,
- [00:06:33.666]you know, through these years that you've taught OR OER and specifically
- [00:06:37.566]when we've pioneered this in 20,15 2016 we were all growing and and trying to find
- [00:06:43.466]where are the resources in each area, you know, looking for different resources.
- [00:06:47.766]But I remember recording and having a recording and an interview with you
- [00:06:51.266]at that time in your classroom teaching OER.
- [00:06:55.500]Could you kind of help the audience understand a visual about how you're face
- [00:07:00.866]to face classroom because I think it's still face to face and still face to face.
- [00:07:04.266]So, you know, I think sometimes people think, OER
- [00:07:06.500]oh that has to be all, you know, all online or all all digital.
- [00:07:10.266]But I was so impressed with that classroom with you teaching there.
- [00:07:13.533]Your OER course,s the students with their laptops in the classroom, etc.
- [00:07:18.333]So so kind of make a visual for our audience teaching OER.
- [00:07:22.333]okay,
- [00:07:23.966]Generally, you have to to
- [00:07:25.566]incentivize the students to do the reading outside of class, which is true.
- [00:07:28.433]With any kind of content you're using.
- [00:07:30.600]But what I was doing at that time,
- [00:07:32.633]and I've changed that up many times over so many different versions of my course.
- [00:07:36.066]But at the time you were thinking about I would have them do the outside reading.
- [00:07:39.800]And then when we came to class, I would give them problem sets.
- [00:07:44.500]And I don't mean like mathematical problems,
- [00:07:46.100]but what applications for the content, right?
- [00:07:50.366]And put them into small groups and have them work through.
- [00:07:53.033]Well, here's what we learn from this literature.
- [00:07:55.000]Now, here's a scenario that occurs in real life
- [00:07:57.633]how can you use this literature to, you know, solve the issue of the scenario?
- [00:08:03.100]And, you know, we would do that
- [00:08:05.366]almost day in and day out and the students really had to kind of own the material.
- [00:08:09.866]But it was also a way to double dip on the teaching because you get
- [00:08:14.766]you've got the material that you want them to read
- [00:08:16.333]that somewhat theoretical but it also has some applications.
- [00:08:18.733]And then you're I try to apply do applications out of current events
- [00:08:23.100]so that the students can also be paying attention to and learning current events
- [00:08:26.666]and using the course material to make sense of the wider world.
- [00:08:30.400]Because the ultimate thing you want to take away is some
- [00:08:32.366]some theoretic tools that they can use to just understand
- [00:08:35.566]what's going on, what's your courses over.
- [00:08:37.866]Exactly.
- [00:08:39.466]So when you and just one other question,
- [00:08:42.933]because I know you've received a lot of great feedback
- [00:08:46.233]with some of the feedback you get from students, because
- [00:08:49.333]as we talked earlier, before you came in, we said when they come into Dr.
- [00:08:52.566]Duffin's class, you know, they don't know, you know,
- [00:08:55.633]I mean, they probably now know they don't have a textbook, but
- [00:08:58.766]but they just know this is the way we teach.
- [00:09:01.433]What what does what's the feedback you get from students?
- [00:09:04.100]A little relief, you know, and I'm not ashamed to say
- [00:09:07.966]I can be a little bit shameless on that
- [00:09:09.333]on the first day of the course when we're going over the syllabus.
- [00:09:11.566]I point out this is the format.
- [00:09:13.900]There is no textbook.
- [00:09:15.266]I've saved you $150.
- [00:09:17.366]You're very welcome. Right.
- [00:09:18.866]And they appreciate that. I mean, you know, there's
- [00:09:23.700]they don't especially have young students, right?
- [00:09:25.633]There.
- [00:09:26.000]They're somewhat mostly fresh out of high school.
- [00:09:29.100]And they don't really understand how college works,
- [00:09:32.800]how college professors work or what they're going to have a wide range
- [00:09:36.500]of experiences with faculty across their 120 something credit hours.
- [00:09:40.366]Right.
- [00:09:41.833]But at least early on,
- [00:09:42.866]they can get a sense, well, here's someone who's actually thinking
- [00:09:44.666]about what it's like to be on my side of the classroom.
- [00:09:47.033]And I know that sounds kind of self-serving.
- [00:09:48.666]Like I said, I'm a little bit shameless about that,
- [00:09:51.233]but I think it's good for them to see that they
- [00:09:53.566]that their situation matters to us here.
- [00:09:55.733]Exactly.
- [00:09:57.566]And then the learning, you know, and the outcomes in the end of the year
- [00:10:00.866]when they get through, do they ever say anything in reference to any of that?
- [00:10:05.033]With the feedback on the. OER?
- [00:10:07.033]they'll comment about some readings they liked better than others.
- [00:10:10.466]They're more inclined to comment about readings they didn't like.
- [00:10:13.166]And that would be true in a textbook situation.
- [00:10:15.466]Probably so.
- [00:10:16.366]I mean, I mean, I've had the experience of,
- [00:10:19.000]you know, with students, students filling out the evaluations.
- [00:10:21.366]They say this textbook was terrible. Get a different one.
- [00:10:24.900]I'm not sure
- [00:10:25.233]what to do with that information exactly, but I.
- [00:10:28.333]Have you got one you would want to recommend?
- [00:10:29.866]Probably not.
- [00:10:30.966]But, you know, they do evaluate as they're going along.
- [00:10:34.666]And so,
- [00:10:35.866]you know, I can't say that I can really call specific instances
- [00:10:38.366]of them praising particular assignments, but I can recall them criticizing
- [00:10:41.800]particular assignments
- [00:10:42.533]and that you know, that makes me go back and take a second
- [00:10:44.633]look if if I thought the assignment worked, but maybe they didn't.
- [00:10:47.966]I need to look at that through their eyes.
- [00:10:50.533]And, you know, the beauty of of course, is if I decide I don't want to use this
- [00:10:53.500]assignment anymore, I can do something different next semester.
- [00:10:56.266]Exactly.
- [00:10:57.766]So just to kind of wrap up here, I have one other question.
- [00:11:01.400]What is there one thing you would say to a faculty member, I'm sure,
- [00:11:05.200]and of course, that we're going to have a lot of listeners here,
- [00:11:07.566]but I know UNK faculty, too, have come to you.
- [00:11:10.633]What do you say to them when they're contemplating teaching an OER course?
- [00:11:16.333]Is there something you say?
- [00:11:17.500]I think you need to set aside much more time for course development
- [00:11:21.600]because the textbook can provide you the structure for the course
- [00:11:24.900]and the topics, and the publisher can provide you the ancillaries.
- [00:11:27.966]If you really don't want to write your own tests,
- [00:11:29.533]you don't have to writing assignments, whatever when you go, OER, it's
- [00:11:33.466]it's all on you.
- [00:11:34.800]And so what I've done is depending on the nature of the reading
- [00:11:39.666]and how I was, you know,
- [00:11:41.333]emphasizing different things in the course,
- [00:11:43.100]there are a lot of times where you just have to writer a study guide
- [00:11:45.366]to go with the reading assignment.
- [00:11:47.000]And that takes time.
- [00:11:48.866]But I think it pays off because the students,
- [00:11:50.966]if they if they use the study guide as they're reading,
- [00:11:54.633]they come to class better prepared to work with the material.
- [00:11:57.333]And that's what it's all about.
- [00:11:59.066]I think so.
- [00:11:59.400]That's what it's all about.
- [00:12:00.533]So Diane, is there anything I didn't ask you or
- [00:12:03.733]we didn't ask you that you wanted to talk about?
- [00:12:06.900]You know, I would just say anybody who's contemplating this,
- [00:12:09.433]especially if it's of course, you teach semester and in semester out,
- [00:12:13.500]I would try it.
- [00:12:15.300]And I love that.
- [00:12:16.166]You know you can
- [00:12:17.233]if it doesn't work, either go back to your textbook or keep working
- [00:12:21.033]to make it better, but, you know, decide how it feels for you,
- [00:12:24.300]decide how it feels for your students. And then you have to do what works.
- [00:12:26.766]It's not for everyone. It's not for every class.
- [00:12:29.533]But I think enough benefits are there to make it worth giving it a try.
- [00:12:32.066]Excellent.
- [00:12:32.700]And if somebody wanted to contact you, how should they contact you
- [00:12:36.200]at duffind@unk.edu Thank you, Diane.
- [00:12:39.033]It's been wonderful having you.
- [00:12:40.466]Thank you for saving our students dollars and inspiring them in political science
- [00:12:46.300]for the all these years and specifically since 2015.
- [00:12:49.900]I thank you for being a pioneer. All right. Thank you.
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