Guides @ UF: Open Access Research and Resources: Open Educational Resources

What are Open Educational Resources?

Open Educational Resources (OER) are teaching, learning, and research materials that are freely accessible, usable, adaptable, and shareable. They include textbooks, lesson plans, videos, quizzes, and other tools that are openly licensed, meaning you don’t have to pay for them and you can often modify them to fit your needs.

Open Educational Resources can help make education more affordable and accessible by removing cost and permission barriers for students and educators.

Try These First

OpenStax
Free, peer-reviewed textbooks in a variety of subjects.
OER Commons
A large library of OER lesson plans, curricula, and classroom activities, searchable by subject and level.
Khan Academy
Thousands of free instructional videos, practice exercises, and lessons covering K-12 and early college subjects.
MIT OpenCourseWare
Free access to course materials from MIT classes, including lecture notes, assignments, and exams.

Most subject-specific LibGuides here at UF have an OER section, so be sure to check those out if you know what subject you're researching!

Explore OER Platforms

Open Textbooks, Lesson Plans & Teaching Materials, Multimedia, Courses & Modules, Search Tools

Open Textbooks

OpenStax
Free, peer-reviewed textbooks in a variety of subjects.
BCcampus OpenEd
Open textbooks and guides with a focus on higher education.
LibreTexts
A collaborative platform offering textbooks and learning resources in various subjects, often customizable.
Open Textbook Library
A collection of openly licensed textbooks that can be downloaded or used online.
Pressbooks Directory
Catalog with thousands of open-access books.

Lesson Plans & Teaching Materials

OER Commons
A large library of OER lesson plans, curricula, and classroom activities, searchable by subject and level.
MERLOT
A collection of online teaching and learning materials with peer reviews and user ratings.

Multimedia

Khan Academy
Thousands of free instructional videos, practice exercises, and lessons covering K-12 and early college subjects.
PhET Interactive Simulations
Free, research-based interactive science and math simulations for learners of all ages.

Courses & Modules

MIT OpenCourseWare
Free access to course materials from MIT classes, including lecture notes, assignments, and exams.
Saylor Academy
Free, self-paced online courses with optional certificates in many subjects.
Canvas Commons
A library of open educational content you can import directly into your Canvas learning management system.

Search Tools

OASIS
A search tool that pulls together OER from multiple sources and formats.
Open Education Global
A global network and directory of OER projects and providers.