Brief presentation on OER created for course on subject.

1. Open Educational
Resources (OER)Opportunities and Challenges
Mattias Olshausen, eLearning Coordinator, Big Bend Community College

2. What are OER?
Open educational resources are free educational content, typically available on the
open Web (Canvas Commons is an exception). Varieties include:
Open textbooks
Open video content
Open courses
Open images

3. Opportunities of OER
OERs make college more affordable to students by replacing expensive textbooks in
whole or in part.
Faculty have more freedom to disseminate their work on their own terms.
OER content can often be adapted and modified without infringing copyright.
OER are an equalizing and democratizing force because they make high-quality
educational content available to a broad audience, including among people without
the means or opportunity to pursue formal education.
OER challenges the practices of profit-driven textbook companies.

4. Challenges of OER
OER increases students’ reliance on computers and the Internet, which can also pose
problems for individuals from low-income backgrounds.
The vast range of OER sources can be intimidating.
Some students may find it easier to read traditional print sources.
The economic sustainability of OER is uncertain.
OER may not be subject to the same editorial, peer-view, or quality control processes
as traditional sources.

5. OER sources
Open Washington maintains a list of OER sources here:
https://start.me/p/QRDO7R/find-oer
Some of the most prominent sources include:
OpenStax: https://openstax.org/subjects
OER Commons: https://www.oercommons.org/
Project Gutenberg: http://www.gutenberg.org/wiki/Main_Page
Library of Congress: https://www.loc.gov/free-to-use/