OER are hosted in a variety of places, from institutional repositories to grant-funded websites. Just like paid resources, repositories have different focuses and strengths. Below we provide some places to start your search. If you're not finding what you need, contact your OER Librarian, OER Specialist, or your discipline's Subject Specialist. It's important to consider accessibility when choosing OER, the accessibility section below will help you evaluate the OER you find.
These repositories include some of the most widely used OER, if you know you are looking specifically for a textbook, this is a good place to start.
To explore a wider range of OER, including non textbooks, check out these metafinders that search many repositories:
Explore a curated list of repositories
This chapter recommends search tools based on your needs. It includes sections on subject specific repositories, course specific repositories, and where to find ancillary materials like lesson plans, quizzes and more.
Most OER are used online, which means it's particularly important to ensure that they are accessible to all students. A few examples of features that make textbooks more accessible are: screen reader compatible formats, images described with alt text, captions on video and audio, downloadable file formats, and high contrast text and images. These resources can help you evaluate the accessibility of OER:
If you find an OER you want to use that isn't accessible, request an OER consultation to learn about ways to adapt the OER to meet your needs.
These curated lists of OER adopted by various institutions provide a jumping off point. Instructors and OER professionals have already done the work of finding and evaluating resources for their specific courses. These lists can help you find a resource, or give you a better understanding of what is out there.
This page is adapted from Open Educational Resources (OER), by Abbey Elder and Iowa State University Library, which is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0)
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