Like regular textbooks and course materials, open textbooks and other OERs vary in quality. You are the subject matter expert for your course, so only you can decide what the best resources are. At the bottom of this box is a link to a handy rubric for evaluating OERs.
Can my students get open textbooks or OERs in print?
Yes! Many open textbook repositories offer print versions. You can also upload PDF versions of OERs to the FHSU Bookstore Website and have them printed as coursepacks (as long as the license doesn't contain a noncommercial provision, which looks like a dollar sign with a slash through it: . If you want to learn more, consult BC Campus's Print on Demand Guide.
Are there ancillary materials to go with open textbooks?
Sometimes! If you don't see any in the repository where you found the open textbook, search OER Commons for the title of the book to determine whether others have created and shared supplementary materials. You can also ask around on your professional list-servs--sometimes faculty at other institutions have created supplementary materials but may not have thought to share them. If you can't find any, FHSU has funding for creating your own ancillaries.
How do I adopt an open textbook?
It's fairly similar to adopting a traditionally published textbooks--consult BC Campus's Adoption Guide for more details.
The Scholarly Publishing and Academic Resources Coalition has published a guide responding to seven common myths about what OERs are, what formats they come in, their quality, copyright issues, sustainability, ancillaries, and institutional readiness.
. If you want to learn more, consult BC Campus's Print on Demand Guide.