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Understanding Open Educational Resources

According to UNESCO, Open Educational Resources (OER) describes any educational resource designed and licensed for teaching and learning. OER includes curriculum maps, textbooks, streaming videos, multimedia applications, podcasts, or any other freely available materials that do not require royalties or license fees.

There are multiple ways to lower the cost of education for students using OER materials. Faculty members can help in this endeavor by using an open-licensed book that costs nothing to students and is always available on the Internet. Another efficient method to help reduce educational resource costs is redesigning the class using courseware already built for the subject matter. Furthermore, authoring an OER textbook is an advantageous option to help students save money on academics and a gratifying undertaking for faculty. 

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OER Infographic

This guide to OER illustrating the importance of using Open Educational Resources was adapted from Georgia State University and holds a CC_BY_NC license.

infographic, transcript under the image

 

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Transcript for A Quick Guide to Open Educational Resources (OERs)

What are OERs?

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Freely Available

Most are legal to copy, adapt, and redistribute semester after semester.

 

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Open

“Open menas openly licensed, meaning they are in the public domain or the copyright holder has abridged rights to eliminate barriers to access/use/derivative works.

 

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CC Licensed

Often contains a creative commons license. Check each resource for rights.

creativecommons.org/licenses

 

Why are OERs and other types of affordable content important?

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Course materials are freely available on the class FIRST DAY OF CLASS

 

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INCREASES

In Retention, Completion, and Grade Point Average

 

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COST SAVING

In 2016-17, $36 million dollars in textbook const for students across the Cal State system 

Als.csuprojects.org

 

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Increases opportunities for creativity collaboration and INNOVATIVE TEACHING

 

Affordable Content beyond OERs

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LIBRARY SUBSCRIBED RESOURCES

 

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OPEN ACCESS CONTENT

Such as Directory of Open Access Journals

 

Open Projects

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REPLACE a high-cost textbook with a free textbook

 

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CREATE new course materials

 

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PUBLISH an open textbook

 

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REVISE existing OER to meet current needs

 

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DEVELOP course templates based on OER to facilitate use

 

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USE library resources in place of textbooks

 

Inside a red ribbon: Wer’re Here to Help!

ONline Education and Training 657-278-4528

 

Creted by our friends at Georgia State University Library and reused under CC_BY_NC

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