Open Educational Resources

The cost of textbooks can be a significant barrier to student success and learning. The goal of the University of Arkansas OER Course Materials Conversion Program is to encourage and support the use of open educational resources (OER) by U of A instructors to positively impact the learning and ease the burden of students.

The University of Arkansas OER Course Materials Conversion Program

The University Libraries and the Global Campus offer faculty extra compensation funding to encourage moving from high cost commercially published textbooks to open educational resources (OER). There are two levels of compensation: $7500 for OER creation and $4500 for OER adaptation. The end goal for each course is to dramatically reduce the materials cost (textbooks) for enrolled students. The OER must replace the current textbook.

Adapt OER by choosing an existing (or multiple existing) open educational resource and significantly remixing it to update the material or to fit the needs of the course. It is then expected that the adapted OER would be published under an appropriate open license for use by others. The OER would then be assigned in the specified course, thereby eliminating the need for students to purchase textbooks or other course materials.

Create OER by designing an original project of at least 75% of the course content. The remainder can be adopted from existing openly published resources. The final product must be submitted as a complete textbook or collection of course materials that can be used to fully teach a course. Work product must be submitted in a format that can be printed in PDF format. It may also be created as an interactive online resource as well. The resource must eliminate the need for students to purchase traditional textbooks.

Adaptation = Remix
Creation = Build from scratch

Adapted and created OERs are assigned digital object identifiers (DOIs) as appropriate and will be indexed in the Open Textbook Library.

How to Apply

1. Complete the application form and required supplemental materials and collect the appropriate chair, department head, or dean signatures.
2. Submit the completed and signed application by Wednesday, March 27, 2024. Submissions should be sent to oer@uark.edu.
3. During the application review period, applicants will be interviewed by the OER team and OER Campus Advisory Group members.

View OER Policies
View a sample Memorandum of Understanding

Selection Criteria

Selection of program participants will be based on the application's overall quality, alignment with selection criteria, and the feasibility of the completion timeline. Preference will be given to proposals that:

• Serve the greatest number of students
• Focus on a university, college or departmental core course
• Will be used in multiple sections or classes
• Replace expensive course materials

OER Course Materials Conversion Program Participants

Each participant will be required to create a timeline for completion and submit it to the OER team upon agreeing to participate in the program before any funds are disbursed. Each participant will have up to 5 semesters (not including summer term) with one possible renewal to complete the project, implement the OER in a class, and complete the final report. Compensation for projects not completed within the time frame will be forfeited unless other arrangements have been made and agreed to by both the applicant and the OER team.

Librarians will help faculty search for open access materials, remix and adapt chosen textbooks, and navigate copyright inquiries. Instructional designers will support faculty in organizing developed or curated resources and assist in creating supplemental learning components/materials if needed. Global Campus Instructional Designers will also assist in checking materials for accessibility and compliance. To keep the project moving on time, regular meetings with the Open Education Librarian are required; additional meetings with the team and a member of the bookstore team may be recommended.

OER Adaptation ($4,500) compensation will be disbursed in three phases:

1. $1,000 upon submitting the remix project outline and project completion timeline
2. $2,000 upon the delivery and publication of the final project (edited and formatted) and made available on an accessible open platform or format and published with a Creative Commons license
3. $1,500 when the resource is adopted and used in one or more courses and a short summary reflecting on the implementation of the resource(s), its impact on teaching, and student reception and interaction with the OER

OER Creation ($7,500) compensation will be disbursed in three phases:

1. $1,000 upon submitting the textbook outline and project completion timeline
2. $3,500 upon the delivery and publication of the final project (edited and formatted) and made available on an accessible open platform or format and published with a Creative Commons license
3. $3,000 when the OER is implemented in the course(s) and a short summary reflecting on the implementation is submitted to the OER team

Other Projects

Special projects that have unique value to the University Arkansas community will be considered on an ad hoc basis by the Open Education Librarian in consultation with the OER Team. These projects may be funded at levels comparable to the Course Materials Conversion Project depending on the project's scope. With the approval of the OER Team, these projects will have access to the same support and resources as other OER projects.

Questions? Contact us!

Email us at oer@uark.edu.

Images based on Leicester City Council / CC BY 4.0