LibGuides: Open Educational Resources: OER Explained

OER Tutorial

Learn OER
Self-guided tutorial about OER produced by Open Washington

OER Created at Puget Sound

A First Course in Linear Algebra
Written by Puget Sound math professor Rob Beezer, A First Course in Linear Algebra is an introductory textbook designed for university sophomores and juniors. Typically such a student will have taken calculus, but this is not a prerequisite. The book begins with systems of linear equations, then covers matrix algebra, before taking up finite-dimensional vector spaces in full generality. The final chapter covers matrix representations of linear transformations, through diagonalization, change of basis and Jordan canonical form
Music Theory for the 21st-Century Classroom by Robert Hutchinson
Music Theory for the 21st–Century Classroom is an openly–licensed online four–semester college music theory textbook. This text differs from other music theory textbooks by focusing less on four–part (SATB) voiceleading and more on relating harmony to the phrase.

Open Educational Resources Defined

OER Global Logo by Jonathas Mello is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution Unported 3.0 License

According to the Scholarly Publishing and Academic Resources Coalition

"Open Educational Resources are teaching, learning, and research resources released under an open license that permits their free use and repurposing by others. OERs can be full courses, course materials, lesson plans, open textbooks, learning objects, videos, games, tests, software, or any other tool, material, or technique that supports access to knowledge."

The Open Education movement is built around the 5Rs of Openness

Retain – the right to make, own, and control copies of the content
Reuse – the right to use the content in a wide range of ways (e.g., in a class, in a study group, on a website, in a video)
Revise – the right to adapt, adjust, modify, or alter the content itself (e.g., translate the content into another language)
Remix – the right to combine the original or revised content with other open content to create something new (e.g., incorporate the content into a mashup)
Redistribute – the right to share copies of the original content, your revisions, or your remixes with others (e.g., give a copy of the content to a friend)

Why Use Open Educational Resources?

OERs are free, ready-to-use content for your classes.
Creators and users are free to retain rights, reuse content, remix content, revise content, or redistribute content.

Materials are: