Define Open Educational Resource (OER). How are OERs created and shared?

Join WhatsApp Channel Join Facebook Page/Group

Open Educational Resources (OER): Definition, Creation, and Sharing

Open Educational Resources (OER) refer to teaching, learning, and research materials that are freely available for use, adaptation, and redistribution. These resources are made available under open licenses that allow anyone to access, modify, and share them, often with the goal of reducing educational costs, increasing accessibility, and fostering collaboration. OERs encompass a wide range of materials, including textbooks, course materials, lecture notes, multimedia content, software, and even entire courses. By offering high-quality, no-cost educational resources, OERs have the potential to revolutionize education worldwide, particularly in regions where access to traditional educational materials is limited or expensive.

The core principle of OERs is the idea of open access, which enables educators and learners to freely use, remix, adapt, and redistribute content in a manner that suits their needs. This openness enhances both the reach and relevance of educational resources by allowing teachers to tailor materials to their specific context, and learners to access and benefit from content without barriers.

Characteristics of OERs

1. Free Access: OERs are freely available online, often without the need for subscriptions or payments. This openness ensures that everyone, regardless of location or financial means, can access quality educational materials.
2. Open Licensing: OERs are typically made available under open licenses, such as those provided by Creative Commons (CC). These licenses specify the permissions for how the material can be used, modified, shared, and attributed. For example, the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license allows users to remix and adapt the material as long as they give appropriate credit to the original author.
3. Reusable and Adaptable: OERs can be modified and customized to meet the specific needs of users. This adaptability makes them highly versatile for different educational contexts, whether for classroom instruction, self-paced learning, or institutional use.
4. Diverse Formats: OERs can exist in multiple formats, including text, audio, video, simulations, quizzes, and software. This diversity enables instructors to integrate various media into their teaching and cater to different learning styles.
5. Public Domain or Open Licensing: OERs are either in the public domain (no copyright restrictions) or come with open licenses that allow users to copy, adapt, remix, and redistribute the material freely.

How OERs are Created

Creating OERs involves the development of educational content that can be shared and adapted without restrictive licensing. These resources are often created by educators, institutions, governments, or non-governmental organizations (NGOs) with a commitment to making knowledge freely accessible. Below are the key steps involved in the creation of OERs:

1. Identification of Educational Needs and Gaps: The creation of an OER typically begins with identifying specific educational needs or gaps in existing resources. These gaps might be based on a particular subject, learning level, geographical region, or educational format. For example, a university instructor may recognize the need for a comprehensive biology textbook that aligns with their course syllabus but is not yet available as an OER.

2. Development of Content: The development process involves creating the educational material itself. This might include writing textbooks, recording lectures, creating interactive quizzes, or developing simulations. Depending on the material, this can be a collaborative effort involving teams of educators, instructional designers, content experts, and multimedia specialists.

• Text-based OERs: These could be written as textbooks, manuals, study guides, or course modules. Open textbooks are a common example, often developed by faculty members who write and adapt content to align with their teaching needs.
• Multimedia OERs: These resources might include educational videos, podcasts, animations, and infographics. Multimedia OERs can be particularly effective in conveying complex or abstract concepts in a more engaging manner.
• Interactive Resources: Simulations, educational games, and online quizzes can be developed to provide hands-on learning experiences for students.

3. Open Licensing and Permissioning: Once the content has been created, it must be made openly available through an appropriate open license. The most commonly used licenses for OERs are those provided by Creative Commons. These licenses allow the content creator to retain control over aspects such as attribution and whether modifications are allowed. Common Creative Commons licenses include:

• CC BY (Attribution): This license allows others to remix, adapt, and build upon the material, even for commercial purposes, as long as they credit the original creator.
• CC BY-SA (Attribution-ShareAlike): This license allows for adaptation, but derivative works must also be licensed under similar terms.
• CC BY-ND (Attribution-NoDerivatives): This license allows redistribution but not modification of the content.
• CC BY-NC (Attribution-NonCommercial): This license allows others to remix and adapt the material, but not for commercial purposes.

4. Quality Assurance and Review: Before OERs are made publicly available, they are often subjected to peer review or quality assurance processes to ensure their accuracy, pedagogical value, and overall quality. This might involve feedback from experts in the field, instructional designers, or learners themselves.

5. Ongoing Updates and Revisions: Since OERs are often created to be adaptable, they can be regularly updated and revised to reflect new developments, changes in curriculum, or improvements based on user feedback. This ensures that the content remains relevant, accurate, and high quality over time.

How OERs are Shared

Once OERs are created, the next step is to share them with the wider community. The sharing process ensures that educators, students, and institutions can access, use, and potentially adapt the materials to their needs. There are several ways OERs can be shared:

1. OER Repositories and Platforms: OERs are typically stored in digital repositories or platforms that provide easy access for users. These platforms are designed to store, organize, and index a wide variety of educational resources. Some of the most popular OER repositories include:

• OER Commons: A public digital library that offers a wide array of teaching and learning materials for educators worldwide.
• MERLOT (Multimedia Educational Resource for Learning and Online Teaching): A repository that provides peer-reviewed educational resources and teaching materials.
• OpenStax: A nonprofit organization that provides free, peer-reviewed, openly licensed textbooks for college courses.
• The Directory of Open Access Books (DOAB): A database of academic books that are freely available online under open licenses.

2. Educational Institutions and Websites: Many universities and institutions create and share OERs through their own platforms. Some institutions have dedicated OER initiatives where they develop open-access textbooks, courseware, or research materials for their community and the public. Websites and online course platforms like edX, Coursera, and MIT OpenCourseWare also offer a wealth of OER materials in the form of entire courses, lecture notes, and video lectures.

3. Social Media and Collaborative Networks: Social media platforms like Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn can also play an important role in sharing OERs. Educators and institutions frequently use these platforms to announce new resources, share links to materials, or collaborate with others in the creation and dissemination of OERs. Collaborative networks, such as OERu and Open Education Global, further help in creating, promoting, and sharing resources on a global scale.

4. Open Educational Conferences and Events: Conferences focused on open education often provide platforms for educators, content creators, and institutions to share their OERs. These events facilitate collaboration and the exchange of ideas, promoting the widespread adoption and sharing of OER practices.

5. Collaborative and Community Contributions: Another aspect of OER sharing is the community-driven nature of OERs. As content is freely available, other educators and learners are encouraged to contribute by adapting, remixing, or improving existing resources. These contributions help to improve the quality and accessibility of educational content for all.

Benefits and Challenges of OERs

Benefits:

• Cost Reduction: OERs reduce the financial burden on students by providing free access to educational materials.
• Increased Accessibility: Learners from various socio-economic backgrounds or geographical locations can access high-quality educational resources.
• Customization: Teachers can adapt the materials to suit their specific teaching contexts and learner needs.
• Collaboration: OERs foster a culture of collaboration, with educators and institutions sharing resources and best practices.

Challenges:

• Quality Control: Ensuring the quality of OERs can be challenging without proper review and quality assurance processes.
• Awareness and Adoption: Many educators may not be aware of OERs or may not have the skills to adapt and integrate them into their teaching practices.
• Sustainability: Ensuring that OER projects are maintained and updated can be a challenge, especially if funding and institutional support are limited.

Conclusion

Open Educational Resources (OER) represent a transformative approach to education, offering cost-effective, high-quality, and adaptable materials that can be freely shared and used. Their creation involves the active engagement of educators, institutions, and organizations, and their sharing is made possible through various online repositories, platforms, and networks. While challenges exist, the benefits of OERs, particularly in terms of accessibility, cost reduction, and pedagogical flexibility, make them an invaluable tool for educators and learners alike. As the global educational community increasingly embraces open practices, OERs have the potential to democratize education and significantly impact the way learning resources are distributed and utilized worldwide.

Subscribe on YouTube - NotesWorld

For PDF copy of Solved Assignment

Any University Assignment Solution

WhatsApp - 9113311883 (Paid)