Learn about OER and Affordability efforts at BYU
What are open educational resources (OER) and affordability?
Affordability: This refers to efforts used by educational institutions to reduce or eliminate course materials costs while maintaining the expected high quality of a higher education experience.
Open Educational Resources: “teaching, learning, and research materials that are either (a) in the public domain or (b) licensed in a manner that provides everyone with free and perpetual permission to engage in the 5R activities,” (Creative Commons) that is, retain, reuse, revise, remix, and redistribute (Wiley). Further, the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation defines open education as “the myriad of learning resources, teaching practices and education policies that use the flexibility of OER to provide learners with high quality educational experiences.”
Open Educational Resources: “teaching, learning, and research materials that are either (a) in the public domain or (b) licensed in a manner that provides everyone with free and perpetual permission to engage in the 5R activities,” (Creative Commons) that is, retain, reuse, revise, remix, and redistribute (Wiley). Further, the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation defines open education as “the myriad of learning resources, teaching practices and education policies that use the flexibility of OER to provide learners with high quality educational experiences.”
News & Highlights
BYU Faculty Highlight
Thom Edlund--OER in Russian Literature
Thom Edlund (retired), librarian at BYU's Harold B. Lee Library, taught Russian literature classes for years. He found that teaching using Open Educational Materials benefits the students as they are able to explore a greater breadth of literature options.
Recent OER & Affordability News
Congress to Renew $7 Million Open Textbook Pilot!
A bipartisan budget agreement reached in the U.S. Congress will renew and strengthen the federal Open Textbook Pilot Grant Program with $7 million in funding for Fiscal Year 2020—a $2 million increase over previous years. Supported by advocates of higher education affordability, the renewal of this program for a third year is a resounding endorsement of the positive benefits that open textbooks can achieve for students. The funding is included in the Further Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2020, part of a $1.37 trillion budget package that Congress is expected to approve this week.