OER by Discipline Guide
Start by consulting the OER by Discipline Guide: University of Ottawa
- Suggested resources for specific courses offered at uOttawa
- High-level assessment by librarians
- Evolving list
Points to consider when searching for OER
- May not find an exact replacement for a commercial resource: some adaptations and using more than one OER may be required
- OER repositories are often multidisciplinary
- Resources come in a variety of types and formats
- Not all repositories are organized the same way: some offer filters and reviews to help refine search results
- The quality of the metadata associated with each resource will vary greatly, which can make it difficult to apply filters or perform a federated search of multiple repositories simultaneously
- Some repositories include resources that are "free" but not necessarily "open", therefore take the time to verify the copyright or licence terms of each item to confirm if it is an OER
Search tips
- Search by discipline or subject first
- If searching by keyword, start with broader concepts and then narrow down using discipline-specific terms and/or limiters available on the platform
- Look at the table of contents in commercial textbooks for inspiration
- If available, use the "advanced search" function
- Look for a copyright notice, conditions of use, or a licence to confirm the resource is “open” (not just "free")
See also "Finding Open Content" and "Repositories and Search Tools" by Ariana Santiago in OER Creation Toolkit, edited by Isaac Mulolani (University of Regina), CC BY 4.0.