Supplemental online resources are a simple means to enrich online course content. Along with course specific online materials and resources, like a syllabus, lecture notes, or quiz reviews, more specific (and extending) materials can further student comprehension and engagement.
With this in mind, Open Educational Resources (OER) provide a wealth of opportunity to enrich online courses. While many OER courses are intended to be a complete self-guided learning environments, the practical value lies in the rich content already suited to online study.
A few examples of worthwhile OER course repositories are:
OpenCourseWare — http://ocw.mit.edu/courses : Created in 2001 by MIT, OpenCourseWare has compiled an impressive online library for a variety of academic topics. Everything from Computer Science to Comparative Cultures are part of their offerings.
OCW Consortium — http://www.ocwconsortium.org/en/courses : Formed to bring together course content from institutions worldwide, the courses and topics provide content from a wide range of disciplines, and present the materials in multiple languages:
OER Commons – http://www.oercommons.org : Designed towards both learning and teaching, OER Commons provides worthwhile resources on specific topics within a course of study, like specific historical events, ‘sidebar’ topics of interest, and self-guided learning extensions.
For more information on the pedagogical implications of OER:
- EDUCAUSE Review — Open Educational Resources and the Role of the University
- Hewlett Foundation — Open Education Resources Overview (PDF)
- Wikipedia — Open Educational Resources
