Heritage University OER (Open Access Resources): Home

                                                                              STAEMENT OF PURPOSE:

This OER LibGuide seeks to introduce Open Educational Resources (OER) to the Heritage University community.   OER support the University’s mission in empowering a multi-cultural and inclusive student body to overcome economic barriers limiting access to higher education and promoting a more just society.

The Library supports making learning resources more discoverable, and accessible, and cost-effective, for all members of the HU community.

OER materials  bear the characteristics of the 5 Rs: 
                                                   Open Educational Resources (OER) Characteristics:

                   

There is not a standard statement as to what constitutes OER.   The United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) touches on all the major points with its description:
Open Educational Resources (OER) are teaching, learning and research materials in any medium – digital or otherwise – that reside in the public domain or have been released under an open license that permits no-cost access, use, adaptation and redistribution by others with no or limited restrictions  (UNESCO, 2017).

The Hewlett Foundation (2021) is one of the fiscal drivers behind the OER movement.  For them,"OER are teaching, learning, and research resources that reside in the public domain or have been released under an intellectual property license that permits their free use and re-purposing by others” (Hewlett Foundation, 2021)."OER are teaching, learning, and research resources that reside in the public domain or have been released under an intellectual property license that permits their free use and re-purposing by others."

Stuber (2015) sees OER as being, "digital, online, free of charge, and free of most copyright and licensing restrictions. OA is compatible with copyright, peer review, revenue (even profit), print, preservation, prestige, quality, career-advancement, indexing, and other features and supportive services associated with conventional scholarly literature.

OER includes everything from games and lab activities to textbook and lectures as well as whole courses.

Click on this mind map explores the range of content in OER