Free Is Good - Bethany Rayl

Open educational resources (OER) are found in the public domain and can be used for free for teaching, learning, research, and other educational purposes. These materials can be retained, reused, revised, remixed, and redistributed. These “5R permissions” of OER allow you to not only access the materials and resources free of charge, but also to make them even better. Sounds good, right? But what’s really out there, and why should you use these resources?

https://www.edutopia.org/blog/free-good-bethany-rayl

Open Educational Resources - Florida Atlantic University

Open Educational Resources (OER) are teaching and learning materials that you may freely use and reuse at no cost. Unlike fixed, copyrighted resources, OER have been authored or created by an individual or organization that chooses to retain few, if any, ownership rights (OER Commons, CC BY-SA).  The US Department of Education includes in its definition that OER are materials in the public domain (free of copyright protection) or ones that are available for use by intellectual property licenses that allow free use or repurposing by others, such as Creative Commons.

https://libguides.fau.edu/oer

Open Research: a Practical Guide - University of York

Open Educational Resources (OERs) are teaching, learning and research materials which are free to access and openly licensed. OERs can be in any format, including online courses, textbooks (see right), activities and games, videos and software. In many cases OERs are built on the findings of open research, and should be similarly licensed to maximise their usability. 

https://subjectguides.york.ac.uk/openresearch/oers#:~:text=Open%20Educational%20Resources%20(OERs)%20are,and%20games%2C%20videos%20and%20software.

The OER Starter Kit for Program Managers - Abbey K. Elder, et al; Rebus

The OER Starter Kit for Program Managers was created to bring attention to the work that is involved in building and managing an OER program, from learning about open educational practices and soliciting team members to collecting and reporting data on your program’s outcomes. Regardless of your program's scope and your own experience with OER, we hope that the Starter Kit for Program Managers will have some tips to help you along your way.

https://press.rebus.community/oerstarterkitpm/

Open Educational Resources - University of Buffalo

This is a collection of guidance, tips and suggestions for the communities we serve. These resources come from our expert faculty, dedicated alumni and passionate students who continue the work outlined in our mission statement: The Graduate School of Education is an inclusive community that works to improve educational, social and economic opportunities for people and communities. This is a developing list. Please stop back in for updates and new material.

https://ed.buffalo.edu/about/community/resources.html

Saving students money: Delta's OER initiative reaches new milestone - Midland Daily News

Since 2016, Delta’s Open Educational Resources initiative has saved students a total of $1 million in textbook costs. OER are textbooks and other course materials that are licensed Creative Commons and are freely available online to use, share and modify. Michele Pratt, manager of Library Programs and Services and OER Committee co-chair, said the effort began to help with student success. Students saved more than $142,000 during the winter 2022 semester alone.

https://www.ourmidland.com/news/article/Saving-students-money-Delta-s-OER-initiative-17202926.php

An Interview with Holly Gabriel and Larry Shrewsbury on Open Educational Resources at SOU - Claire Grant, the Siskiyou

 The Siskiyou recently had the opportunity to speak with Open Educational Resources advocates Holly Gabriel and Professor Larry Shrewsbury about what this program has to offer at SOU. Both faculty members at the university, The Siskiyou asked what OER means to them, and how it can help SOU and its students. Here’s what Open Access and Governmental Resources Librarian Holly Gabriel, who also leads the efforts in OER, had to say about the program. 

https://siskiyou.sou.edu/2022/05/27/an-interview-with-holly-gabriel-and-larry-shrewsbury-on-open-educational-resources-at-sou/

Two CAS Faculty Win Outstanding Innovation in Teaching with Technology Award - Daniel Hawkins, University of Nebraska Omaha

Cecilia Tocaimaza-Hatch, Ph.D. and Tara Toscano, MA, faculty members in the College of Arts & Sciences, were recently awarded the Outstanding Innovation in Teaching with Technology Award. The award was presented virtually at UNO’s 2022 Digital Learning Showcase on May 10, where the two recipients later gave well-attended presentations on remote experiential learning opportunities and on humanizing and effective grading strategies in online courses.

https://www.unomaha.edu/college-of-arts-and-sciences/news/2022/05/two-cas-faculty-win-outstanding-innovation-in-teaching-with-technology-award.php

Lehigh Valley holds first-ever conference devoted to open, affordable resources - Penn State

During the past few years, many Penn State Lehigh Valley faculty members have made it a priority to incorporate open and affordable educational resources (OAER) into their classroom instruction. That commitment was on vivid display at the first-ever Penn State Lehigh Valley Open and Affordable Showcase, a half-day conference sponsored by the campus Library and Academic Affairs. There, attending faculty and staff had the chance to recognize and celebrate OAER-related work at the campus, and to advance the importance of the resources in regard to student access, affordability and retention.

https://www.psu.edu/news/lehigh-valley/story/lehigh-valley-holds-first-ever-conference-devoted-open-affordable-resources/

Strengthening digital infrastructure: A policy agenda for free and open source software - Frank Nagle, Brookings

Much of the discussion around digital infrastructure has focused on broadband availability (which is certainly important), but the role of free and open source software (FOSS or OSS) has gone underappreciated. FOSS—software whose source code is public, is often created by decentralized volunteers, and can be freely used and modified by anyone—has come to play a vital role in the modern economy. I present 11 policy proposals separated into four domains of focus: creating an open source program office; measuring and understanding the FOSS ecosystem; enhancing the positive economic impact of FOSS; and securing the FOSS ecosystem. Although there is no silver bullet for guaranteeing the future health and growth of FOSS, these proposals will go a long way towards ensuring FOSS can continue to play its essential role in enabling the modern U.S. economy to grow and flourish.

https://www.brookings.edu/research/strengthening-digital-infrastructure-a-policy-agenda-for-free-and-open-source-software/

Checking for accessibility: boosting opportunity in 3 clicks! - Microsoft Education Team

As more educators have adapted to meet the needs of blended and hybrid learning, the amount of teacher-generated and curated content has increased dramatically. Open education resources (OERs) are being accessed by many more students, teachers, and education staff as well. Regardless of the source of the content—a traditional publisher, OER, or educator—ensuring that all learners can access all resources is a top priority for institutions, and schools need efficient, user-friendly ways to verify that their content both meets the needs of students and is in compliance with regulations. Checking for Accessibility, the second in a series of five Microsoft Education “Accelerate Learning Kits,” explores this topic.

https://educationblog.microsoft.com/en-us/2022/05/checking-for-accessibility-boosting-opportunity-in-3-clicks

Working group to offer summer workshop series on Open Education Engagement - Penn State University

The Penn State Open and Affordable Educational Resources (OAER) Working Group is offering a series of virtual workshops on Open Education Engagement during the 2022 summer session. The workshops are designed to introduce Penn State faculty and staff — particularly instructors, librarians and instructional designers — to topics related to open education, with the potential to lower the costs of course materials for students. 

https://www.psu.edu/news/academics/story/working-group-offer-summer-workshop-series-open-education-engagement/

How to Apply a Creative Commons License to Your Work - Jowi Morales, Make Use of

Whether online or in the real world, every creative work we see is owned by its creator or the person or company who commissioned it. That means no one can use it for whatever reason unless they have explicit, written permission from its owner. Nevertheless, some people want to share some of their creations with the general public for free. So, to differentiate copyrighted works from those for sharing, the Creative Commons nonprofit organization introduced the Creative Commons license. But how can you apply this license to your work that you want to share? Find out how below.

https://www.makeuseof.com/how-to-apply-creative-commons-license/

Open Education Austria

The following collection of FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions) is the result of advice given to Austrian university lecturers by copyright expert Žiga Škorjanc and is constantly updated. It is available under a CC BY SA licence in German language. (You may use auto translation)

https://www.openeducation.at/en/oer-faqs/

Open educational resources help students save money - Rianne Herrera, the Connection

 In response to a push by Cosumnes River College’s Open Educational Resources Award Program, professors have begun adopting open educational resources in their courses. The OER Award Program aims to include more zero textbook cost classes for students using OER like public online textbooks. Librarian Andi Adkins-Pogue, who is the project lead of the OER Award Program, said the program hopes to help students save money by offering compensation for professors who pledge to modify their courses to fully utilize OER.

https://www.thecrcconnection.com/news/2022/05/18/open-educational-resources-help-students-save-money/

OER: The Power of Social Media Storytelling - Rebus Community

In this Office Hours session co-hosted with the Rebus Community, we are joined by guests Leigh Kinch-Pedrosa (Head of Marketing & Communications, Pressbooks), Sarah Mease (Digital Publishing Assistant, Virginia Tech University Libraries), Karolina Karas (Strategist, Marketing and Communications, BCcampus), and Symphonie Swift (Communications Specialist, OpenStax).

https://youtu.be/0xkQaJ8hUn0

OER Development Projects CO-DREAM OER - Clemson

Clemson Libraries has recently been awarded $759,629 by the Department of Education’s Open Textbook Pilot Program for CO-DREAM OER (Collaborative Development of Robotics, mEchatronics, and Advanced Manufacturing Open Educational Resources), a project to develop OER textbooks on robotics. This project is a first for the Libraries, and involves joint collaboration between library faculty and faculty from CECAS, as well two other institutions in South Carolina. 

https://libraries.clemson.edu/teaching/open-ed/oer-development-projects/

OER Webinar (recorded) - Christine Pawliuk and Meg Brown-Sica Colorado State Univerity, and Merinda McLure, University of Colorado, Boulder

Presented March 29, 2022 as part of the SLA Learning Hub.  This panel descibes and provides examples of OER in this introductory webinar.  Open License.

https://www.pathlms.com/sla/courses/39998/webinars/28586

Massachusettes Department of Higher Education Open Educational Resources

The Open Educational Resources (OER) initiative grew out of recommendations from the Commissioner’s OER Work Group and aims to expand OER use on campuses and provide advice and counsel to the DHE for statewide implementation.  These freely accessible text, media, and other digital assets are useful for teaching, learning, and assessing as well as for research purposes—this collaboration offers direct benefits to faculty and students at the 29 public higher education institutions in the Commonwealth.

https://www.mass.edu/strategic/oer.asp

OPEN EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES FOR INSTRUCTION (OER) - UIS ION

This professional certificate prepares participants with knowledge related to incorporating Open Educational Resources. Participants into their courses and programs. Open educational resources can provide high-quality resources like textbooks at low or no cost to students. Successful adoption of OER in programs requires planning, selection, management, and the ability to ensure quality.

In order to earn the (OER) Open Education Resources for Instruction certificate, a student must successfully complete:

• Three core courses
• One elective course

https://www.uis.edu/ion/professional-certificates/open-educational-resources-instruction-certificate

Why does open access make publishing more complicated? - Inma Peral , Maël Guennou, TImes Higher Ed

Open-access publishing is going mainstream. This is sometimes a requirement, but it is also perceived as complex. That’s understandable, considering that OA comes in so many definitions and shades; gold, green, platinum and diamond journals and more shape a moving landscape where different stakeholders push their own agenda.

https://www.timeshighereducation.com/campus/why-does-open-access-make-publishing-more-complicated