Open and Affordable Course Materials

Open Educational Resources (OER) are free, online teaching and learning materials that users can:

Retain - the right to make, own, and control copies of the content (e.g., download, duplicate, store, and manage)
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 material 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)

OERs include a wide range of materials: assessments, assignments, books, case studies, courses, journals, primary sources, reference materials, simulations, tutorials, tests, and textbooks.

This material is based on original writing by David Wiley, which was published freely under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license at http://opencontent.org/definition

OERs have many benefits for faculty and students due to the fact that they are:

Free: OERs are available online at no cost. They significantly reduce how much money is spent on textbooks.
Diverse: OERs are available for courses across all majors and consist of a wide range of materials: assessments, assignments, books, case studies, courses, journals, primary sources, reference materials, simulations, tutorials, tests, textbooks, and more!
Dynamic: OERs can be changed at any time and quickly made available. This increases the timeliness and relevance of the resources.
Unique: OERs provide an engaging, customized learning experience due to the variety and versatility of the resources.