For an initial search of any OER content, we recommend you start with Mason OER Metafinder (MOM) which has broad, real-time search capabilities. It will enable simultaneous searches across 21 different sources of open educational materials, including well-known OER repositories such as OER Commons, MERLOT, and OpenStax, and also sites such as HathiTrust, DPLA, Internet Archive and NYPL Digital Collections.
For an initial search of OER textbooks, we recommend starting with the top five major textbook platforms: MERLOT, Open Textbook Library, OpenStax, OASIS, and BC Open Textbook Project.
The website Creative Commons Search offers a convenient way to search for content provided by independent organisations. You can limit to the type of resource you are searching for example YouTube or Google Images. Be aware that the results displayed may not always be under a CC license. You should always verify the CC license before using the content.
The first video below shows how to find creative commons videos on YouTube.
The second video highlights several online sites that feature OER images and videos that are freely available.
The CRAAP test can help you evaluate Open Educational Resources (OERs).
CRAAP stands for:
Currency
Relevancy
Authoritative
Accuracy
Purpose
Watch the video below to learn more about using the CRAAP Test to evaluate sources of information.
Use this simple checklist, produced by The University of Queensland Library, to quickly decide whether the OER is appropriate for your purposes. OERs will need to be referenced like any other source of information.
Checklist | Yes | No |
Licensed for open use | ||
CC license that allows for educational reuse | ||
CC license allows for modification and adaption | ||
Public Domain | ||
Suitability | ||
Aligned with course objectives | ||
Appropriately current | ||
Suitable for your level | ||
Quality | ||
Creator is identified | ||
Creator is reputable | ||
Accurate content | ||
Audio, videos, images are of high quality | ||
Ease of use | ||
Clear and easy to understand | ||
Interface easy to navigate | ||
Accessibility | ||
Audio and video resources have a transcript or subtitles | ||
Alternative formats are available if required (as Word document or PDF) |
The Open educational resources (OER) guide by the University of Queensland Library is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.