OER Tools & HOSTING PLATFORMS

One key decision you will need to make when creating your OER is where to host it. Hosting platforms should be web-based, as this allows your OER to be found and re-used by other users. The type of platform you select will typically depend on the type of OER you are creating, and the University of Sheffield provides a number of online platforms to share OER created by staff and students:

Textbooks (Pressbooks)

The Library has an institutional subscription to the Pressbooks authoring and editing tool, enabling you to modify existing open content or write new content and publish it on the Sheffield Pressbooks Network. Textbooks created in Pressbooks are accessible; they can contain media and other interactive elements. The Library also provides funding opportunities for colleagues who are interested in creating OER using Pressbooks or other tools. For more information, or to start using Pressbooks, please email oer@sheffield.ac.uk. 

How is OER promoted in Pressbooks?

Pressbooks is a dedicated platform that promotes OER content. Books can be disseminated through the Pressbooks directory, gaining visibility across other institutions that are part of the Pressbooks network. Books included in the directory are automatically indexed in various library discovery systems. Books can have a Creative Commons licence applied. 


Textbooks (Jupyter Books)

Jupyter Books is an open source publishing tool that is currently used with the Faculty of Science.  It can be used to create books that can display and enhance learning with scientific and mathematical notation. It does have a steeper learning curve than Pressbooks, but would be familiar to colleagues who already use LaTeX or similar markup languages. 

How is OER promoted in Jupyter Books?

Jupyter Books can be published on the web, and Github pages is recommended as a platform. Github supports a variety of different licences. 

Interactive Learning Materials (Xerte)

Xerte is an open source content creation tool that enables you to create engaging and accessible online learning resources. These can include text, knowledge checks, interactive elements and multimedia. Xerte can be used to create structured learning resources, or more self paced websites. 

How is OER promoted in Xerte?

Resources created within Xerte can be made publicly available, but there are no licensing options built into the platform.


Interactive Learning Materials (Google Sites)

Google Sites is a free website hosting service available to staff and students. Google Sites can be created without a detailed knowledge of webpage authoring, but colleagues would be advised to review Google Sites guidance before getting started. Google Sites can contain embedded content from other Google systems, such as Google Docs or Sheets, but you should seek advice before using third party Google Workspace add ons. 

How is OER promoted in Google Sites?

Google Sites can be made publicly available, and will be indexed via Search Engines, but there are no licensing options built into the platform. 

Media Hosting (Kaltura)

Kaltura, the University’s externally facing digital media hub, could be used to store and share OER video and audio resources. Channels can be used to organise content, and you can optionally allow members of the public to download media content to promote re-use and re-mixing.  

How is OER promoted in Kaltura?

Kaltura media can be made publicly available, and will be indexed via Search Engines, but there are no licencing options built into the platform. Media owners can optionally add DOI references into media metadata. 

Code Repository (GitHub)

GitHub is a hosting platform for code repositories. GitHub is used to support a collaborative software development lifecycle. GitHub is used at Sheffield to deliver elements of computational teaching, and both staff and students are eligible to use GitHub education benefits. Github repositories can also be used to host websites via GitHub Pages. 

How is OER promoted in GitHub?

A variety of licences are supported by Github, many of which are permissive and support OER concepts. Please review the Software Licensing section to find the most appropriate licence for your project. 

Research Data (ORDA)

Colleagues can publish research data in ORDA, the University of Sheffield's research data repository. ORDA can host a variety of different resources, such as PDFs, datasets, PowerPoints and software packages. 

How is OER promoted in ORDA?

Data in ORDA can be reused and accessed via a number of different Creative Commons licences, and each record in ORDA is provided with a Datacite DOI.

What isn't an OER Hosting Platform? 

Many of the platforms listed on this page might already be familiar to you, but it's important to realise that some platforms provided by the University are not appropriate for hosting OERs.