Open educational resources (OERs) — educational materials licensed to be freely used and adapted, from online textbooks to problem sets and classroom activities — are adaptable to a specific course and can be adopted in sets or sections, but instructors need to examine them closely for current and error-free content, said members of a panel on OERs hosted by the University Senate’s Library Committee on April 4. The panel’s student member, Akshita Pawar (a sophomore and campus relations coordinating intern of the Public Interest Research Group), noted that she and her classmates must sometimes buy a published textbook, but the instructor may use only half of it. OERs are certainly more affordable, Pawar said — an advantage especially for general education classes, which are required but whose instructional materials may not be something students wish to keep.
