Tracking the mentions of historic and modern oceanographic research vessels in introductory-level oceanography print and online (OER) textbooks

ABSTRACT -- This research project explored print and OER (Open Education Resource) introductory-level oceanography textbooks to track how many times, if any, there are mentions of historic and modern research vessels that have contributed significantly to our baseline knowledge of the field of oceanography. We focused on introductory oceanography textbooks because for many non-STEM majors, their oceanography textbook and oceanography course are the only academic instruction and exposure that they may receive to the world of oceanography. We selected the following research vessels for our investigation based upon their contributions to the discipline: H.M.S Challenger (1872-1876), Meteor (1925-1927), Glomar Challenger (1968-1983), JOIDES Resolution (1985-present), and Chikyū (2002-present). We acquired 14 print textbooks through interlibrary loan and 5 electronic online textbooks published between 1973 and 2022. We recorded the number of instances and how each ship was mentioned (in-text, pictures, callout boxes) in addition to where in the textbook (chapter title and number) by searching the textbook index and table of contents for chapters focusing on topics such as maritime history and ocean technology. We verified our findings among our research team via inter-rater reliability (100%).

In addition to instances, we recorded any references in the text out of the ordinary, such as a ship’s name being misspelled. We documented one such mistake that was reused in additional OER textbook chapters, causing a spelling error to be reused in multiple instances. Out of the OER books we examined, 40% of the books mentioned at least one research vessel, with none referencing the Meteor or Chikyū. Conversely, the majority of print books mentioned most, or all, of the vessels listed above, taking into consideration the ship’s launch date and textbooks publication date. This research shows that print editions published over the years are still acknowledging the contributions of oceanographic research vessels; however, the representation of historic and modern ships is inaccurate or lacking in OER books. With universities pushing for the adoption of OER books in courses, instructors need to be aware of how scientific research vessels are portrayed in these publications.

Citation: Catalano, C., N. Williams, L. Guertin. (2023). Tracking the mentions of historic and modern oceanographic research vessels in introductory-level oceanography print and online (OER) textbooks. Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs. Vol. 55, No. 2, 2023 doi: 10.1130/abs/2023SE-385296