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Learning Portal - OER Toolkit : Creating

Creating

Whether working alone or as a team, this module provides information and tools to aid faculty in authoring new and adapted OER for teaching and learning.

OER Design Tips

Consider this list of design tips to create sharable, reusable OER - and get help from the Learning Commons along the way!

  • Start with what’s there. Look to existing collections with quality resources such as eCampus Ontario’s Open Textbook Library. Also consider materials that you've created which may be available offline.
  • Make it accessible. It's important to ensure that the resources you create are accessible to all learners. Note that it is more work to make an existing OER accessible than it is to create an accessible OER from the start. Use the accessibility checklist to guide your work.
  • Make it adaptable. The more modular your content is, the easier it is for future users to reuse it. If you’re working on an open textbook, separate your content by chapter and subchapter. If possible, provide a version of your resource in an editable format, such as .docx or Google Docs.
  • Make it open. Select and clearly display the Creative Commons license for your resource. If you integrate other materials into your resource, select those that are open. See the Licensing Module in this toolkit for information on choosing an open license, or contact the Learning Commons for help.
  • Make it discoverable. Work with Centre for Teaching and Learning staff to determine the best platform for sharing the resource with others. Centre for Teaching and Learning staff can also advise you on adding appropriate descriptors that make your OER discoverable.
  • Invite critique. Evaluate your resource using a rigorous rubric such as the Comprehensive OER Evaluation Rubric. Ask peers to review the resource using the evaluation rubric. OER development is an iterative process, so try to revisit your OER on a regular update cycle.

Additional Information:

Creating Your Own OER

Why Create OER?

  • Assures you can customize content to your specifications

  • Extends your academic profile

  • Provides more relevant and engaging materials for students

  • Reduces costs for students

Attribution:

Text a derivative of BCOER Poster, by BCcampus, licensed under CC BY 4.0

Examples of OER Creation

Note: For more information on choosing an open licence for the material you create, see the Licensing Module in this toolkit, or contact the Learning Commons for help.

OER Authoring Guides

Accessibility Checklist

As educators bound by the Alberta Human Rights Commission and the Duty to Accommodate, we have ethical obligations to ensure that courses are fully accessible to all learners, including those with disabilities.

Unless carefully chosen with accessibility in mind, instructional resources can erect barriers that make learning difficult or impossible. Use the materials below to ensure that the resources you create are accessible to all learners.

Accessibility Toolkit

Authoring and Hosting Tools

Some OER authoring tools are free, and others require payment. Also, be aware that some tools require users to actively change their sharing settings to make resources public, or may only allow sharing with other registered users and not the wider public.

Free Tools

Paid Tools

Grande Prairie Campus 10726 106 Avenue
Grande Prairie, AB   T8V 4C4
780-539-2911
1-888-539-4772 (Toll-Free)
StudentInfo@NWPolytech.ca
Fairview Campus 11235-98 Avenue   PO Bag 3000
Fairview, AB   T0H 1L0
780-835-6600
1-888-999-7882 (Toll-Free)
StudentInfo@NWPolytech.ca
National Bee Diagnostic Centre 1 Research Road   PO Box 1118
Beaverlodge, AB   T0H 0C0
780-357-7737
NBDC@NWPolytech.ca
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