Discover the pros and cons of using open educational resources in your classrooms.

1. By Kristi L. Raymond, Ed.S.
Instructor, Bellevue College

2.  Saves money on textbooks
 Provides wide options for resources
 Provides free supplemental course
resources
 Allows students to preview the
material before a course begins

3.  Allows instructor to easily use the
materials and not worry about copyright
infringement
 Allows instructor to modify materials to
create new materials
 Saves time creating resources
 Provides mechanism to share the
instructor’s work or research globally
 Enhances the instructor’s reputation
 Allows for peer review

4.  Removes barriers that prevent some
students from learning:
- location
- money
- access to college
 Allows for the sharing of ideas across
cultures

5.  Little research on the efficacy of using OER
materials versus traditional materials
 Limited quality control
 Challenging to maintain the courses for
the long-term
 Lack of public knowledge about OER
 Non-revocable nature of the licensing
 Time consuming to find appropriate OER
 Lack of understanding and awareness by
faculty