Open Educational Resources (OER) are teaching and learning materials that are free and openly licensed for others to retain, reuse, revise, remix, and redistribute the work. Creative Commons, for example, offers open licensing tools that allow creators to retain copyright over their work while explicitly allowing and encouraging others to copy and reuse their work according to the set permissions.
What's the difference between Open Access (OA) and OER?
Open Access (OA) and Open Educational Resource (OER) content are very similar in the sense that they are both freely accessible content.
Reduce student costs: The high cost of commercial textbooks and course materials has a negative impact on student success and retention. A 2016 survey found that 66% of college students did not purchase or rent a required textbook because of its cost.
Enable timely access to course materials: In addition to being free of cost, OER are also available online, often in multiple formats (HTML, PDF), which allows for day-one access.
Contribute to a culture of creative collaboration, open pedagogy, and accessible learning environments.
You may not be able to find an existing OER textbook or resource that meets the needs of your course. If that's the case, there are other options for increasing access to materials for students!