Module 6: How Can I Create OER of My Own?

For some subjects, OER do not yet exist, and you may wish to create something. Or, you may have a method of teaching a topic that you would like to share with others. In these cases, you can consider creating new OER.

MLO 6.1. Find collaborators or a team to work with

The first step in creating an OER is to think about who else you can work with. Unless the OER you want to build is very focused or limited in scope, you will benefit from having extra help and input. You may know colleagues who would be good contributors or supporters, and there are communities online where you can request additional members.

Rebus Community is a Canadian non-profit that supports collaborative open publishing. Chapter One of their step-by-step guide to creating open textbooks, The Rebus Guide to Publishing Open Textbooks (So Far), discusses recruiting collaborators and setting up an effective team. Navigate through the chapter using the links at the bottom of each page.

Rebus Community Contributor Marketplace - Rebus Community also offers a forum to post and reply to calls for authors, editors, reviewers, and to share project ideas.

MLO 6.2 Create Derivative Works

Modifying and adapting already existing OER is an effective way to customize content specifically for your courses and your students. There are essentially five steps in the adaptation process:

1. Check license

2. Identify format

3. Assess editability

4. Determine access

5. Publish textbook

Modifying an Open Textbook: What You Need to Know explains these five steps for faculty, and those who support faculty in the modification process. Step-by-step instructions for importing and editing common open textbook file and platform types are included.

MLO 6.3 Create Original works

Many professors find that there isn’t an existing OER for the courses that they teach. In these cases, modification isn’t really an option and you may want to create an OER of your own.

Authoring Open Textbooks - An openly published book for faculty authors, librarians, project managers and others who are involved in the production of open textbooks in higher education and K-12. Content includes a checklist for getting started, publishing program case studies, textbook organization and elements, writing resources and an overview of useful tools.

Making Open Textbooks: A Video Guide - This video series presents a summary of The Rebus Guide to Publishing Open Textbooks (So Far). Videos go over the roles, models, and guidelines that make up the process of creating and publishing open textbooks. From project conception and rounding up a team of collaborators, to creating, editing, and reviewing your content, all the way through to release, marketing, adoptions, and revisions, these videos summarize the many steps along the way.

Pressbooks - PressbooksEDU offers a simple, affordable, and accessible way to create, customize, and host a single open educational resource or other educational online material.

MLO 6.4 Choose appropriate license for derivative/ original works

After you have created a derivative or a new OER, you will have to decide what kind of open license you want to use. If you have incorporated other OER into yours, you will need to pay attention to the licenses that those have when you choose a license for your own. This chart, Creative Commons License Compatibility, shows which Creative Commons licenses are compatible.

If you have created all of the content yourself, licensing the content is as simple as choosing the Creative Commons license that you would like using the Creative Commons License Chooser and declaring the license on your work.

MLO 6.5 Locate the appropriate OER repository and upload your contributions

Now it is time to share your OER with the world. You will need to find a home for your work that allows others to find it. OER Commons is a large repository of OER where OER creators can share their work. The UNC System has a Hub at OER Commons where you can find materials created or uploaded by UNC faculty and librarians. If you have created a textbook, the Open Textbook Library is a highly respected repository where you can submit your open textbook for review and possible inclusion.

Additional Resources

• “Copyright, Open Licenses, and Building OER” - OER Fridays! Webinar with Meredith Jacob from Creative Commons USA, and Karen Bjork from Portland State.

Questions around copyright and fair use are common when incorporating OER materials into courses. In this session, the speakers will demystify copyright, fair use, and Creative Commons as it relates to OER. Additionally, the session will cover remixing OER while also staying in line with copyright.

• “Using OER to Build More Inclusive Materials”

OER Fridays! Webinar with Jasmine Roberts from The Ohio State University and Stephen G. Krueger from Dartmouth

Open licenses attached to OER allow for the creation of customized materials, unlike commercial textbooks. As a result, OER provide opportunities for faculty to incorporate more inclusive materials. In this session, the presenters will share ways to adapt or build materials that include multiple voices and viewpoints, especially from underrepresented groups.

• “Accessibility and Reducing the Digital Divide”

OER Fridays! Webinar with Nora Burmeister from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Samantha O’Connor from Central Carolina Community College

The accessibility of course materials and the closing of the digital divide have been priorities on our campuses. In this session, the presenters will provide a brief introduction to accessibility for online education and share tools to assess the accessibility of different types of materials.

Attributions

Copyright, Fair Use, and Building/Remixing OER by Meredith Jacob and Karen Bjork is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License except where otherwise noted.

Using OER To Build More Inclusive Materials by Jasmine Roberts and Stephen Krueger is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License except where otherwise noted.

Open for Access: Accessibility and Reducing the Digital Divide by Nora Burmeister and Samantha O’Connor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License except where otherwise noted.

The Rebus Guide to Publishing Open Textbooks (So Far) by Apurva Ashok and Zoe Wake Hyde is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, except where otherwise noted.

Rebus Community Contributor Marketplace by Rebus Community is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, except where otherwise noted.

Modifying an Open Textbook: What You Need to Know by Cheryl Cuillier, Amy Hofer, Annie Johnson, Kathleen Labadorf, Peter Potter, Richard Saunders, and Anita Walz is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, except where otherwise noted.

Authoring Open Textbooks by Melissa Falldin and Karen Lauritsen is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, except where otherwise noted.

Making Open Textbooks: A Video Guide featuring Zoe Wake Hyde is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported License, except where otherwise noted.

Creative Commons License Compatibility by Kennisland on Wikimedia Commons is published under a CC0 License

Creative Commons License Chooser by Creative Commons is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License

OER Commons by ISKME is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial- ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

UNC System OER Hub on OER Commons by ISKME is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial- ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Open Textbook Library Criteria by Open Education Network is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

References

Pressbooks. (n.d.). Pressbooks: Online content and courseware development. https://pressbooks.com/

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