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Open Educational Resources

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What are Open Educational Resources (OER)?

Open Educational Resources (OER) are free, openly licensed teaching and learning materials that anyone can use, adapt, and share. They include textbooks, lecture notes, videos, and even full courses—designed to remove cost barriers and provide greater flexibility in education.

Unlike traditional course materials, OER allow instructors to customize content to fit their teaching needs while ensuring all students have free access to high-quality learning resources.

These freedoms give instructors more control over course materials, allowing them to tailor content to their students and teaching goals.

Examples of OER

  • Textbooks – Free, openly licensed books that replace costly commercial textbooks.
  • Course Materials – Syllabi, assignments, lesson plans, and activities that can be adapted.
  • Multimedia – Videos, audio recordings, and interactive simulations to enhance learning.
  • Assessments – Quizzes, exams, and other tools for measuring student understanding.

The 5 Rs of OER

OER are designed with open licenses that grant users these five key permissions:

  • Retain – Download, store, and keep copies of the content.
  • Reuse – Use the content in its original form for various purposes.
  • Revise – Adapt, adjust, or modify the content to better fit your needs.
  • Remix – Combine content with other materials to create something new.
  • Redistribute – Share copies of the content with others.