Why oer?  (Page 2/3)

An Ad for an Element

A lesson plan for Grades 9–12 Chemistry and Physical Science from LEARN NC. Build an understanding of the structure and properties of matter while practicing communications skills. The author comments: "My students really showed creativity. I have had every form of ad turned in from video commercials to pamphlets to movie posters". Licensed for use and reuse under Creative Commons BY-NC-SA 2.5.

These materials, as well as thousands of others, can be found in OER Commons , a comprehensive open learning network that provides the platform for facilitating the OER process.

OER is much more than a collection of resources. It is more than a thing. It is also a process that is dependent upon teachers and learners who continuously improve the resources, and share their use scenarios so that others can also benefit. It is also about collaborating to create materials.

Why oer?

OER is a relatively new movement in education; educators and learners as well as learning institutions are driving its development. OER provides an alternative to the rising costs of education. For example, in some countries like South Africa, some educators and learners are tapping into OER as the only source for textbooks. OER provides an opportunity to try new ways of teaching and learning, many of which are more collaborative and participatory.

Some educators are using OER as a way to get students more involved, using the OER process as a way to collaborate with them on content creation. This process brings students into a larger context of learning and sharing knowledge beyond the four walls of their classroom.

Flexibility is a key concept in OER—materials can be adapted for your specific needs. Because these materials can be searched by a wide variety of criteria, you can quickly find what you specifically need.

Oer is relevant, usable, adaptable, and free

Because of the flexibility of OER materials, you can make them relevant to you and your students’ needs. Why are educators and learners prompted to search for teaching and learning materials? An OER Commons survey of over 400 teachers and learners in 2007 reveals that:

• 29% use OER to expand knowledge or learn a new topic
• 17% use OER to stay current
• 15% use OER to get ideas for lessons or coursework
• 11% use OER to supplement lessons or coursework
• 10% use OER to improve teaching methods
• 10% use OER to connect with teachers or learners who have similar interests
• 5% have other reasons why they use OER
• 3% use OER to complete a class assignment.

Discussions with teachers and learners illustrate the precise ways they are using OER materials. One educator in particular describes his experiences with OER as a way to create a much-needed textbook with his colleagues. Here’s what he says:

“I guess about five years ago, being a professor, there was just a loose group of individuals who had expertise in signal processing spread over the country and we all were teaching and thinking about teaching courses. We all kind of felt like there was no common textbook that all were excited about. There just seemed to be a need like a textbook for this class. So it just seemed to be a possibility for all of us together to take notes and things that we have developed for classes and combine them into this particular way.”