Open Educational Resources (OER)

Open Educational Resources are free (or relatively) inexpensive resources for classroom use. OERs comprise many different useful classroom materials, such as textbooks, activities, quizzes and tests. According to this Educase article, some of the benefits of using OERs include the ability to collaborate in an open online community with other teachers worldwide in developing classroom content and the comparatively light cost burden OERs incur as opposed to expensive textbooks and other physical materials. A downside of OERs is that because of their open-source nature, there is not a unifying standard of quality; therefore, the onus is on each individual teacher to determine what OERs will and will not prove effective.

As a future Social Studies teacher, I found several OERs relevant to my content area on the site OER Commons. One such resource is 1492 - An Ongoing Voyage. This online exhibition, as provided by the Library of Congress, involves a multifaceted and detailed look at the worldwide historical implications of Columbus' 1492 expeditions to the New World. It features a wide variety of images and documents pertaining to these voyages and the events that followed, such as early maps of the Americas, written historical manuscripts, detailed examinations of European culture at the time of its global expansion, and insights into the perspectives of conquered peoples. I think this OER could be of great use in explaining the far-reaching consequences of Columbus' journey without having to stretch the instruction over several textbook chapters.

Here's a map from Columbus' days - a "round world," but with no Americas. Neato!

Sometimes, entire courses worth of material are presented as online OERs. For instance, this AP US History course, provided by UC College Prep, contains detailed, structured information and notes, discussion prompts, and in-depth activities covering the entire breadth of US history. This resource could potentially replace a textbook if carefully implemented into coursework, although the information provided seems more focused on the "big picture" than the more intimately detailed textbooks that I am familiar with as AP materials.

Another useful OER I found is an interactive game provided by the Online Constitution Center called Abraham Lincoln's Crossroads. In the game, students match wits with a talking, animated Lincoln as he walks them through the major decisions of his presidency. At each "crossroads," the player is asked to determine what he or she thinks would be the best course of action for Lincoln to take, requiring careful critical thought and consideration. After students choose their solution, the game explains what Lincoln actually did in the given situation, allowing students to assess his leadership and compare it with their own point of view. Abe Lincoln's Crossroads exemplifies how technology can help make learning fun without diminishing its impact and puts students in a unique analytical position.

cartoon Lincoln is actually kind of creepy but that's beyond the point, I suppose

OER Commons provides a great starting point for exploring Open Educational Resources, but there are many more to be found on the internet. Archive.org provides a large library of lessons and lectures in all subject areas for streaming or download. Their AP US Government material is particularly in-depth and engaging; the flash presentations on course material could definitely add to an AP class. OER Consortium is an online community of educators devoted to the research, development and use of Open Educational Resources, and if I become  particularly invested in these tools I may one day find it prudent to join such a community. OERs, when carefully examined and used constructively, could surely bolster classroom instruction and help ease the financial burden on schools that weighs so heavily. It's the future!