Skip to content

Article 13

  • by

The Transformative Impact of Open Educational Resources (OER) in Shaping Online Learning

The landscape of online education is ever-changing and ever-evolving due to both external forces (COVID-19 pandemic) and the technological progress (more area coverage of high speed internet, ease of data sharing). This led to emergence of Open Educational Resources (OER) that is a powerful force in reshaping the way we create, share and access educational content. It’s worth to point out that while OERs may be used to learn on your own, without the presence of the teacher, they can also mean learning materials to use in any type of learning (in person, hybrid or online).

Let’s start from the beginning: What is OER?

The most common definition is by William and Flora Hewlett Foundation that defined OER as „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 or re-purposing by others. Open educational resources include full courses, course materials, modules, textbooks, streaming videos, tests, software, and any other tools, materials, or techniques used to support access to knowledge.” There are 5 activities/permissions within OER:

  1. Retain: the right to make, own, and control copies of the content
  2. Reuse: the right to use the content in a wide range of ways
  3. Revise: the right to adapt, adjust, modify, or alter the content itself
  4. Remix: the right to combine the original or revised content with other material to create something new
  5. Redistribute: the right to share copies of the original content, your revisions or your remixes with others

The primary advantages of OER in online courses is its ability to break down economic barriers to education. By providing freely accessible and openly licensed educational materials, OER empowers learners around the globe, irrespective of their financial means. While traditional textbooks and course materials can be very expensive and unobtainable for students, OER offers free, quality material, lessening the financial burden.

Another point is flexibility of OER and customization of materials. With the 5R of OER teachers can customize and adapt learning resources to meet the specific needs of their students and objectives of their courses.

While OER brings benefits, it is essential to address challenges such as quality assurance and sustainability. Not everything that is online has to be the best quality – that includes educational materials. When using OER educators have to make sure that the information given is correct and up to date. Additionally, if it’s not possible to download resources teachers risk that the materials will disappear from the website making it inaccessible.

As we navigate the ever-expanding realm of online education, Open Educational Resources stand as a beacon of accessibility, affordability, and flexibility. The transformative influence of OER in online courses not only addresses immediate challenges but also lays the foundation for a more inclusive, adaptive, and globally connected future of learning. Embracing OER is not just a pedagogical choice; it’s a commitment to making education a fundamental right for all.