OER, or Open Educational Resources, are "teaching and learning materials that you may freely use and reuse at no cost, and without needing to ask permission" (OER Commons). Most often, these will take the form of materials that have been openly licensed, which means that their creators have allowed reuse of their works under some conditions.
Specifically, openly licensed works allow for these five freedoms (commonly known as the 'five Rs'):
- Retain. Users can "make, own, and control copies" of openly-licensed materials.
- Reuse. Users can use content in many different contexts, such as on a website or in a video.
- Revise. Users can adapt or modified openly-licensed materials for their own needs.
- Remix. Users can combine openly-licensed materials with other materials to create new works.
- Redistribute. Users can share copies of openly-licensed materials, as well as their revisions or remixes.
OERs can take the form of a textbook, video, learning module, test or quiz, and more.
For more about OERs and where you can find them see our OER Guide here.
Did you know the Augsburg University Bookstore can help you find OERs for your classes?
- Augsburg Bookstore OER
The Augsburg University Bookstore has OER options available from a variety of sources including OpenStax, Merlot, and OER Commons. You can find these resources in the left navigation under "OER."
