Centring Social Justice in Nursing Educational Resources: Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion

Background and purposeOpen educational resources (OER) are socially progressive learning resources that are well positioned to disrupt the exclusionary and marginalizing processes that can sometimes occur within nursing texts. Recognizing the social justice underpinnings of OER, the study focus was to examine how leadership teams should integrate equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) into the design and production of nursing-related OER.Methods and proceduresThis study was theoretically informed by the concept of Othering. The interpretive descriptive methodology involved reflexive and critical dialogue with focus group data that honed skeptical thinking and encouraged the search for alternative ways to think about how codes and themes were named and conceptualized.FindingsParticipating in the two hour focus group were nine leaders, who were authors of two nursing-related OER. Participants included six nurse educators, one educational developer, and two students. Three themes were identified including: diversifying design and production; centring social justice; and nuancing inclusion.Discussion and conclusionPart of the blueprint to the design and production of OER that are shaped by EDI must include incredibly rich, vibrant, and diverse voices and teams who are focused on social justice. This approach offers ways to create space for the beauty of human difference, the nuances of inclusion, and the flourishing and growth of learners. Although we may never produce resources that fully embrace inclusion and belonging, we are confident that diverse and critical voices will shift us closer while centring social justice.