An Introduction to OER for Langara Instructors

Created Feb. 7, 2024 by Briana Fraser

In this lesson, we will introduce the steps involved in using and adapting OER as well as attribution considerations.

Using OER

Once you've identified an OER you'd like to use in your teaching, consider the following steps for putting it to use:

Getting Started with OER

Getting Started with Open Educational Resources by Briana Fraser,
used under CC BY-SA.

Adapting OER

The term, adaptation, is commonly used to describe the process of making changes to an existing work. Though we can also replace “adapt” with revise, modify, alter, customize, or other synonym that describes the act of making a change.

In addition to cost to students, one of the biggest advantages of choosing an open textbook is it gives faculty the legal right to add to, adapt, or delete the content of the textbook to fit their specific course without obtaining permission from the copyright holder. This is possible because the copyright holder has already granted permission by releasing their work using an open — or Creative Commons — license. This type of license gives users permission to use and reuse, share, copy, retain and modify the textbook without consulting the author.

Reasons to Adapt an Open Textbook

One of the benefits of using an openly licensed textbook or other educational resource is that you are free to adapt it to fit your needs. In other words, you can adjust the educational resources to fit your course curriculum, not the other way around. Other reasons for revising an existing open work might be to:

Address a particular teaching style or learning style
Adjust for a different grade or course level
Adapt for a different discipline
Accommodate a different learning environment
Address diversity needs
Meet a cultural preference
Meet a regional or national preference
Address a school, district, or institution’s standardized curriculum
Make the material more accessible for people with disabilities
Add material contributed by students or material suggested by students
Translate the material into another language
Correct errors or inaccuracies
Update the book with current information
Add more media or links to other resources
Use only a portion of the book for a course

Permission to Adapt

When it comes to working with open textbooks (and open educational resources in general), one of the conceptual hurdles faced by most people is around the notion of adapting or changing someone’s work. What exactly can be adapted within the scope of an open textbook, and won’t the original author get upset if you change their work?

Changing someone’s work can feel uncomfortable. But rest assured, if the author has released their textbook under a Creative Commons license that allows for adaptation (which is any Creative Commons license that does not have a No Derivative (ND) attribute added to it) then they expect that you will change the content, providing you give them the proper attribution (and we’ll get into this). Using information and media from an open textbook or other open educational resource are NOT considered plagarism.

What Can You Change?

Anything and everything in an open textbook can be changed as long as the conditions of the open license are met. The modifications or changes you make can be fairly minor or major depending on what you need to do to make the book work for you. That is the beauty and power of open textbooks. You are in charge of the resource. You have been given permission to change it ahead of time by the original author. Take advantage of it. They want you to.

Three Steps Before You Begin

A good rule of thumb when creating an adapted textbook is to keep it simple, especially if you are approaching a remix project for the first time. While it may be tempting to make a number of major changes to a textbook before releasing it to your students, think of the textbook as a living resource that you can improve incrementally over time.

Here are three steps to consider before adapting an existing textbook.

Step 1: Check the License

First, check the license to make sure you have the permission to modify the contents. As long as the Creative Commons license does not have a No Derivative (ND) attribute, you are able to change the contents of the book. See Creative Commons for more information on licenses.

Step 2: Check the File Format

If you want to adapt an open textbook, you will need it in a workable technical format, i.e. an editable file type. These include:

Pressbooks or WordPress files (.xml or .wxr)
HTML files (webpages)
Word document (.docx) or OpenDocument Text (.odt)
Simple text files (.txt)
EPUB
LaTeX files (if the original book includes math or science formulas and equations)

Avoid PDF documents

Many open textbooks are only available as a PDF document, which are not editable. If you want to adapt an open textbook that is only available in PDF format, you will need to convert the PDF document to one of the editable formats listed above.

Converting a PDF document to an editable format is a difficult, time consuming, and imprecise process. Before taking the time to do this, consider contacting the author and asking for a copy of the textbook’s source files.

Step 3: Use Editing Tools

Once you have an editable file, you are ready to begin your adaptation. The tools you use to create your adaptation will depend on the source file of the original textbook and how comfortable you feel working with the format and tool.

A commonly used publishing and editing tool is the online publishing and editing software called Pressbooks. This web-based tool is based on the popular WordPress authoring platform. Working in Pressbooks is similar to working with D2L, the college's course management system.

You can import a number of different formats into Pressbooks for editing including Word, EPUB, and HTML. In turn, from Pressbooks a number of source files can be exported such as EPUB (for use in most e-readers), MOBI (for Kindles), PDF (for printing), HTML, ODT, and XML to act as back-up files for Pressbooks and WordPress.

Attributing Creative Commons Licenses

All Creative Commons licenses require that users of the work attribute the creator. When providing attribution to a CC-licensed work, you should include:

The author’s name, screen name, or user ID, etc. If the work is being published on the Internet, it is best practice to link that name to the person’s profile page, if such a page exists.
The work’s title or name (if applicable), if such a thing exists. If the work is being published on the Internet, it is best practice to link the name or title directly to the original work.
The specific type of license the work is available under. Linking to the license will allow others to find the license terms
The URL where the work is hosted
Mention if the work is a derivative work or adaptation, in addition to the above, one needs to identify that their work is a derivative work i.e., “This is a Finnish translation of [original work] by [author].” or “Screenplay based on [original work] by [author].”

For a more detailed look at how to attribute CC resources, review Creative Commons’ Best Practices for Attributing Content
(https://wiki.creativecommons.org/wiki/Best_practices_for_attribution). It has examples of how to correctly attribute different types of CC licensed content.

Activity

Experience:

Creative Commons
Use Creative Commons to search for learning materials that you are free to use, remix, repurpose, etc.

OER Commons

Join OER Commons. Go to the OER Commons website, then click on Join Now.
Click on Start My OER Portfolio.
Visit Shared Portfolios posted to the OER Commons website to see to see how others search, use, and interact with OER.

Review Questions:

What are the steps involved in using OER?
List a few reasons why you may want to adapt an open textbook?
Do you need permission to adapt an open textbook?
Which file format can be difficult to adapt?

Resources:

Explore the BC Campus Support for Adapting an Open Textbook page.