HCS Course Approved for Digital Book Development

June 17, 2014

The Department of Horticulture and Crop Science is teaming up with The Office of Distance Education and eLearning (ODEE) to bring course content online! Bruce Ackley, HCS instructor and Extension Program Specialist in Weed Science, submitted a proposal to develop an iBook for the Department’s Principles of Weed Ecology and Management class, HCS 5422. The course is taught by HCS professor Kent Harrison and Bruce Ackley. The iBook being developed is part of ODEE’s Book Launch program. The cohort-modeled program where specialists from ODEE pair up with Department faculty and staff is designed for a 5-month turn around with a finished product ready to go before the start of a semester. The goals of the Book Launch program and utilizing iBooks and digital media in the classroom are to increase student engagement, reduce the cost of textbooks, and allow students to access their course materials anytime and anywhere!

Bruce and his team will create Principles of Weed Ecology and Management. The book will support the online version of HCS 5422, currently in development in partnership with ODEE, and will be a one of a kind interactive and engaging resource for students of HCS 5422 and plant identification enthusiasts worldwide. The book will feature high quality images capturing all aspects of over 60 different weeds species. It will also include original high definition movies of herbicide injury and 360-degree movies of all weed species at various stages of growth. The iBook is projected to be available in 2015.

 

For more information about the Book Launch program, check out the ODEE website, here.

Office of Distance Education and eLearning