Open Education Resources

The term Open Educational Resources is a relatively new phenomenon, which first came to use in 2002 at a conference hosted by UNESCO. At that forum OER was defined as: “Open Educational Resources are digitized materials offered freely and openly for educators, students and self-learners to use and re-use for teaching, learning and research.”

The key term in this resource is the word “open”, which has two important aspects, such as free availability over the Internet and as few restrictions as possible on the use of the resource. Several factors in OER are of great importance: there should be no technical barriers, no price barriers and as few legal permission barriers as possible for the users.

Open/distance learning offers a lot of possibilities where students can complete their course work from just about anywhere with a computer and internet connection, which allows students to work when and where it is more convenient for them. Moreover, since students can often work from home to complete their class assignments, both time and money are saved. Another advantage of OER is the prices for online courses, which are generally cheaper than their on-campus counterparts and you won’t have to worry about traveling, moving or getting meal plans on campus. In case of OER learning while working becomes possible, as distance learning can usually be completed on your own schedule and it is much easier to complete distance learning courses while working than more traditional educational programs.

All the above mentioned opportunities sound great, but once running, a distance education enterprise must provide with technical support, specific technology, as well as appropriate resources and professional tutors.