Open Educational Resources (OER)

Open Educational Resources (OER) as defined by Creative Commons are teaching, learning, and research materials that are either (a) in the public domain or (b) licensed in a manner that provides everyone with free and perpetual permission to engage in the 5R activities.

• Retain – make, own, and control a copy of the resource
• Reuse – use your original, revised, or remixed copy of the resource publicly
• Revise – edit, adapt, and modify your copy of the resource
• Remix – combine your original or revised copy of the resource with other existing material to create something new
• Redistribute – share copies of your original, revised, or remixed copy of the resource with others

Open Education Practice

• Expands beyond providing free access to content
• Emphasizes collaborative teaching & learning to improve the quality of education 
• Enables educators to become content curators, creators, and designers
• Allows educators to adjust content and approach without limitations of "all rights reserved"

Adopting library resources (e.g., ebooks, journal articles, video) as course materials can help students save money because they already pay to access these high-quality resources through their tuition and fees. Library resources are NOT the same thing as open educational resources due to their often restrictive licensing, inaccessibility for anyone outside an institution’s current student population, and at times, impermanent nature.

If you decide to use library resources in your course, talk to a librarian first! We can help you troubleshoot licensing, print, and access issues before the term begins. We may also be able to acquire a license to content that students would otherwise have to purchase individually.

The chart below compares the features of library resources and open educational resources.

"Individual faculty members shall have the freedom to select textbooks and other teaching materials for their classes. In multiple section courses, all full-time faculty members who normally teach such courses shall agree to the primary textbook(s) to be used by all faculty teaching the course."

Article IV, Section D of Agreement Between Westmoreland County Community College and the Westmoreland County Community College Professional Association

More in-depth information about copyright, fair use, public domain, and Creative Commons