Many instructors already create their own educational materials. For example, instructors author their own course content, lecture slides, handouts, learning activities, and assessments. Adding open licenses to these materials and sharing them transforms the learning materials into Open Educational Resources (OERs). Doing so makes education more affordable by providing free or low cost online and print options for students. Instructors have academic freedom and control over what to include in their OER and how others can use the resource. Adding open licenses such as Creative Commons copyright licenses turn these materials into Open Educational Resources (OER).
For inspiration, browse the eCampusOntario Open Library for OERs created by University of Windsor colleagues and the Pressbooks Directory, a searchable catalog of open access books from over 200 unique networks.
How do I create something?
Pressbooks, a digital publishing platform, makes it easy for educators to create attractive, accessible, and interactive learning materials. Just like in a word processing program, you can write and format text, insert images, and link to web content (e.g., websites, YouTube videos). Pressbooks has a variety of existing themes and customization options that make your learning materials look professional and meet accessibility guidelines (e.g., WCAG, AODA). You can activate plugins to embed interactive content (H5P), support innovative pedagogy such as web annotation (Hypothes.is), and typeset mathematical language (WP Quick LaTex).
Why would I create something?
Creating your own teaching and learning materials yourself gives you flexibility to teach your course the way that you want to teach it. You are not constrained by how an existing textbook orders or organizes the concepts and chapters in a publisher textbook. Even if you have published a textbook, you may need to wait for release of a new edition to add new knowledge or revise it. Existing learning activities and assessments designed for use in another context—program, institution, or country—may not suit the needs of your students. Or, you might be teaching an in-person course via online delivery, or vice versa, and need to make materials available in new ways.
Authoring an open textbook (a kind of OER) is a collaborative effort. CTL and Leddy staff are available to support you to design and create your own affordable course learning materials.
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What supports are available?
At CTL, we actively support faculty work on design and creation of OER affordable course materials with the following eCampusOntario tools:
Pressbooks
Pressbooks suppors the creation of attractive, accessible, and interactive learning materials.
- Browse the eCampusOntario Open Library for OER
- Sign up for an eCampusOntario Pressbooks Account to start creating your own digital resource
- View the Pressbooks Guide for Faculty at University of Windsor
H5P Studio
eCampusOntario's H5P Studio platform lets you create, adapt, or reuse interactive digital learning objects (videos, images, activities, etc.). You can add them to your Pressbook or Brightspace.
- Read the introductory eCampusOntario H5P Studio Guide for Educators
- Explore the eCampusOntario Catalogue of H5P Content
- Register for an eCampusOntario H5P Studio account to build your own H5P interactive to support learning (e.g., course presentation, fill in the blanks, etc.)
We also offer the following services:
- Workshops on Teaching with Technology, both university wide and tailored for your specific needs.
- Consultations for individuals and groups
- Project management support for design and development of OER and open textbooks
Can I adapt something?
Adapting OER is simple and quick with Pressbooks and H5PStudio. If the creator of the OER allows it, faculty can quickly “clone” a Pressbook or “reuse” H5P and edit the content.
For instance, you can adapt an OER to
- Make a Canadian edition of the OER
- Suit the program that you are teaching (e.g., undergraduate or graduate)
- Add H5P interactives or multimedia to support learning
- Remix content from multiple OER to provide an interdisciplinary perspective (e.g., business and law, psychology and sociology, etc.)
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