OER - Discipline

The first free, online, comprehensive reading lab for college-level reading. Eighty five OWL Reading Activities--including interactive videos and question sets--can be embedded in the customizable text.

OER text developed by CCAC CRE faculty member, Laura Gilbert. In this text, readers use their existing reading and study skills to build upon new skills to use successfully in their college courses. This encompassed the necessary topics, strategies, and skills students need to be successful at the college level, and it aligns with the Discipline's learning outcomes. LibreTexts version includes Blackboard download. Used previously in DVS 101 & 103. Some portions are used currently in CRE 101 & 103.

OER text developed by CRE faculty members Amie Erickson and Hannah Thomas, this text was remixed from other OER to fit the former 060 curriculum and learning objectives. Portions of the text are used in current CRE classes.

This text draws on mostly authentic, contemporary texts from The Conversation website. It presents the following reading strategies: following instructions, learning new vocabulary, identifying the main idea and supporting details, annotating a text, paraphrasing and summarizing, recognizing patterns of organization, understanding data, separating facts and opinions. Illustrated units include warm-up activities, skill presentations and practice, guided readings with comprehension checks, vocabulary-building exercises, and critical thinking challenges. Inter-related high-interest readings motivate students to read, analyze, and discuss. The teacher's book provides a convenient answer key. Additional chapter quizzes are available to educators upon request.

How to Learn Like a Pro! features the “big six” effective learning/study skills topics: learning styles and preferences, time and materials management, critical thinking and reading, note-taking, memory principles, and test-taking techniques. Each of the six units featuring a combined total of twenty-three lessons and accompanying exercises (with a dash of humor here and there) were developed with the diverse student body of the community college in mind.

This material is designed to address the writing needs for students enrolled in a developmental
course, though the material is suitable for multiple levels of English composition. Used in ENG 090.

This edition, from Georgia State University, includes an instruction manual. The previous edition is a transformation of Writing for Success, a text adapted by The Saylor Foundation. Used in ENG 090.

ER text developed by CCAC faculty members Elizabeth Throesch, Joel Wilson, John Fantin, Koryn Noah-Patrick, Ashleigh Fox, and Jean Schulte-Tosh. Used in ENG 101.

This material is designed to address the writing needs for students enrolled in an ENG 101 course, though
the material is suitable for multiple levels of English composition. Used in ENG 101.

How Arguments Work takes students through the techniques they will need to respond to readings and make sophisticated arguments in any college class. This is a practical guide to argumentation with strategies and templates for the kinds of assignments students will commonly encounter. It covers rhetorical concepts in everyday language and explores how arguments can build trust and move readers. Used in ENG 102.

Answers the core questions such as what is good writing, what makes a good writer, how should writing be assessed, and the like persist across contexts, technologies, and eras. Used in ENG 102.

Curated by Cengage, non-fiction reading anthology is appropriate for college-level introductory English courses including English Composition I & II. Used in ENG 101 and 102.

This book is a free and open resource for composition instructors and students, full of essays that could supplement OER rhetoric and writing texts that lack readings. All of the essays in this reader are versatile rhetorically and thematically. You can search for essays that are based on shared values, essays that rely heavily on ethos, logos, or pathos, essays that are very kairos-dependent, and essays that are scholarly.

How Arguments Work takes students through the techniques they will need to respond to readings and make sophisticated arguments in any college class. This is a practical guide to argumentation with strategies and templates for the kinds of assignments students will commonly encounter. It covers rhetorical concepts in everyday language and explores how arguments can build trust and move readers.

Used for English 103, this technical writing handbook teaches students how to create everything from work instructions to user manuals. Used in ENG 103.

Technical Writing Essentials introduces the key elements of professional style, document design, collaboration, oral presentation, and research skills needed to design productive workplace documents and presentations for a variety of purposes and audiences. Used in ENG 103.

This overview of literary genres can be used as a text for a general literature class; includes analysis of genres with readings in each category. Used in ENG 115.

From CCAC faculty: "This resource is incredibly detailed in terms of its chapters: it covers everything from the history of children's literature to fairy tales, fiction, and non-fiction (all required elements for the learning outcomes on the course master syllabus). As a bonus, the book contains a section on banned books, a topic I plan to organize the course around . It also delves into YA literature, which I plan to include in the course. The book in written in an engaging, conversational style that is superior to the textbook I was going to use. It also contains a multitude of links to outside resources: YouTube videos, fanfiction sites, articles, scholarly criticism, and more. Overall, I would strongly recommend this resource to my colleagues teaching Children's Literature as this 489-page resource truly covers every component of our course (and then some!)." Used in ENG 117.

An interactive, multimedia text that introduces students to reading and writing at the college level. Written by five college reading and writing instructors, this text draws from decades of experience teaching students who are entering the college reading and writing environment for the very first time. It includes examples, exercises, and definitions for just about every reading and writing related topic you will encounter in your college courses.

Aligns to the goals, topics, and objectives of many first-year writing and composition courses. Organized according to relevant genres, and focuses on the writing process, effective writing practices or strategies—including graphic organizers, writing frames, and word banks to support visual learning—and conventions of usage and style.
Text includes an Editing and Documentation Handbook, which provides information on grammar and mechanics, common usage errors, and citation styles.
OpenStax is part of Rice University and has adapted and updated the best practices of traditional publishing to create and deliver high-quality, peer-reviewed textbooks. Free OpenStax resources include an electronic textbook, PowerPoint slides, a Blackboard package, and more. Low cost instructor resources from OpenStax Technology partners include automated homework and assessment systems. Portions may be appropriate for a number of courses.

Free Lumen Learning resources include high quality, openly licensed electronic textbooks, non-automated assignments and test/quiz banks, instructor slide decks, and more. Low cost Waymaker packages cost less than $40 per student and include the free Lumen Learning resources, automated assignments and assessments, online problem sets, interactive learning activities, and tools to improve faculty-student connections. To arrange a Blackboard download and receive an ISBN to enter into Follett Discover, see a CCAC librarian or contact lumenlearning.com. Students purchase an access code through the Bookstore Information link in the CCAC Course Catalog or the CCAC Online Bookstore. Courses available: English Composition I & II, Writing Skillls Lab, and Business Communications Skills for Managers.

A text that provides instruction around writing, reading, and critical thinking –combining comprehensive grammar review with an introduction to paragraph writing and composition. Appropriate for classes that prepare students for their next writing course, It includes exercises centering interaction and collaboration.

Information literacy, research, and career resources from the CCAC Libraries to support College Seminar 105 projects.

The Blueprint for Success series comprises three books for the College Success and FYE (First-Year Experience) genre. The central text, Blueprint for Success in College and Career, is designed to show how to be successful in college and in career preparation. In addition, targeted sections are available separately as Indispensable Study Skills and Time Management Strategies, and Career Decision Making.

Free OpenStax college success textbooks provide college and high school students with the information and tools necessary to effectively transition to — and succeed in — college, covering topics like time management, effective study skills, financial literacy, and more. Free resources include an electronic textbook, test/quiz banks, PowerPoint slides, a Blackboard package, and more. Low cost instructor resources from OpenStax Technology partners include automated homework and assessment systems.

This course provides new students with an orientation to the college environment. It works to build more capable lifelong learners by combining conceptual knowledge with practical strategies and skills. Free Lumen resources include high quality, openly licensed electronic textbooks, automatable assigments and test/quiz banks, instructor slide decks, and more. Low cost Waymaker packages cost less than $40 per student and include the free Lumen Learning resources, automated assignments and assessments, online problem sets, interactive learning activities, and tools to improve faculty-student connections. To arrange a Blackboard download and receive an ISBN to enter into Follett Discover, see a CCAC librarian or contact lumenlearning.com. Students purchase an access code through the Bookstore Information link in the CCAC Course Catalog or the CCAC Online Bookstore.

Public Speaking by The Public Speaking Project is a free online public speaking textbook available through LibreTexts. The text contains 18 chapters covering a wide variety of topics related to public speaking. Each chapter is by a different author. Review questions and activities are included. Chapters appear in PDF format and may be printed in black and white or in color. This text is used in SPH 101.

The Public Speaking Project provides eleven videos that can be used in conjunction with their Public Speaking textbook. These videos are used in SPH 101.

This College of the Canyons text examines the principles and practices of public speaking, communication theory, and techniques for public speaking. Includes speech organization, development, research, audience analysis, reasoning, and presentation skills for the development of informative and persuasive speeches. Consider for SPH 101.

In Waymaker Public Speaking, students learn the theoretical and practical skills they need to deliver effective, well-researched oral presentations. The course covers essential communication skills including listening and feedback, audience analysis, research and information literacy, and ethics. It offers practical advice about making one’s voice heard (literally and figuratively), and introduces students to the major speech types, including informative, persuasive, and special occasion speeches. Consider for SPH 101.

In the Preface, the author, who has requested that they not receive attribution, describes this work as “another kind of introductory text in mass communication.” The author “believes that an introduction to mass communication text should be a compelling, historical narrative sketching the ‘ongoing evolution’ of media technology and how that technology shapes and is shaped by culture.” Contact the University of Minnesota Libraries eLearning Support Initiative at learnlib@umn.edu for question banks and other instructor resources. This text is used in JRN 106.

Communication in the Real World: An Introduction to Communication Studies overviews the time-tested conceptual foundations of the field, while incorporating the latest research and cutting-edge applications of these basics. Each chapter includes timely, concrete, and real-life examples of communication concepts in action. Consider for JRN 106.

In this OER textbook, students are exposed to a variety of communication processes and modes, grouped into the fields of study we investigate in academe. Consider for JRN 106.