Open Educational Resources: Open Educational Resources & Open Access

 Open Educational Resources and Open Access

OER are educational materials and resources that can be freely accessed, shared, edited, and downloaded for the benefit of as many students as possible. These resources can include:

• Textbooks

• Videos

• Experiments

• Lesson plans

• Quizzes

• Full courses

• Any other learning tools

Because they are openly licensed (often under Creative Commons licenses), OER can be freely used, adapted, remixed, and shared, unlike traditional copyrighted materials.

In a college context, OER can help reduce the cost of education by providing free alternatives to expensive textbooks and course materials.

5.2 OER, Open Textbooks and, Open Courses by Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 

OER Open Educational Resources by Markus Busges CC BY-SA 4.0 

Open Access Content is digital material that is freely available online at no charge. Additionally, OA content does not fall under most copyright and licensing restrictions. This draws a sharp contrast between OA content and the “pay to play” system of conventional academic publishing.  

5.1 Open Access to Scholarship by  Creative Commons. CC BY 4.0 

Open Access to Research is defined  as materials that freely available to anyone on the public internet to download, save, read, print, link to and distribute within the bounds of the law. Those using the materials must maintain the integrity of the work and give proper attribution and credit to the authors.  

5.1 Open Access to Scholarship by  Creative Commons. CC BY 4.0 

Open Access Logo by MikeAMorrison. CC BY-SA 4.0 

OER materials fall under the spectrum of OA materials. Without access to Open Access works, it would be very challenging to create and maintain most Open Educational Resources.  

Open Access materials are more broadly the backbone of many Open Educational Resources, and it could be said that OER are one type or area of the large umbrella of OA materials that are available. Every Creative Commons license that OER materials utilize falls under an Open Access designation, and Open Access is slightly more expansive as it includes additional licenses (CC BY-ND, CC BY-NC-ND) as well as certain copyrighted works when released by the copyright holder. 

Clarification of Free Cultural Works, Open Educational Materials, and Open Access by Paul G. West. CC BY-4.0 

The 5 Rs of OER describe the key permissions that make Open Educational Resources truly open and flexible. These permissions empower educators and learners to use and customize materials freely. The 5 Rs are:

1. Retain: The right to make, own, and control copies of the content (e.g., download, duplicate, store, and manage the material). 

2. Revise: Adapt, adjust, or modify the content to suit your needs (e.g., translating it into another language or updating outdated information).

3. Reuse: Use the content in a wide range of ways, such as in a classroom, on a website, in a video, or in a presentation. 

4. Remix: Combine the original or revised content with other material to create something new (e.g., mashups, blended lessons, or thematic collections). 

5. Redistribute: Share copies of the original, revised, or remixed content with others (e.g., post it online or distribute it to students or colleagues). 

These rights are granted through open licenses, such as those provided by Creative Commons, making OER a powerful tool for accessible and customizable education.