Library Guides: Open Educational Resources (OER): Evaluate OER Content

Criteria for Evaluating OER Content

Consider the following when evaluating OER for use in your course:

	Content Coverage How much of the content that you want is covered in the resource? Who is the intended audience? Is an effective index or glossary provided? Is adequate context provided for any jargon or technical terminology?
	Content Organization and Accuracy Are topics presented in a logical and clear fashion? Is the content accurate, error-free and unbiased?
	Course Alignment How does the resource align with your course learning objectives?
	Relevance / Longevity Is the content up-to-date, but not in a way that will quickly make the text obsolete? Is the text written / arranged so that necessary updates will be relatively easy or straightforward to implement?
	Modularity Is the text easily divisible into smaller sections that can be assigned at different points within the course?
	Accessibility Are all parts of the resource (images, tables, videos) accessible for all students, including those with disabilities? Review the Accessibility page of this guide for more information.
	Interface Is the resource free of significant interface issues, including navigation problems or distortion of images / charts? Is the resource free of any display features that may distract or confuse the reader?
	Inclusivity Is the content inclusive of a broad set of people and viewpoints? Are examples of diverse perspectives included? Do images represent many different kinds of people and backgrounds?
	Format(s) Available What format is the resource available in? Does that work for your course?

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Evaluation Rubrics and Checklists

The following rubrics and checklists may also be helpful when evaluating OER content.

Open Textbook Library Rubric
What to look for when you review a potential open textbook.
Faculty Checklist for Evaluating Course Materials
Use this 2-page checklist to assess whether the materials or platform you are considering for OER adoption will meet student needs.
Screening for Biased Content in Instructional Materials
This model tool for screening for biased content provides suggestions and examples for review teams during the instructional materials selection and adoption process.
Open Education Resource Repository (OERR) Rubric
This rubric provides a process for evaluating open education resource repositories. There are numerous sources of open education materials available; however, understanding which spaces to begin searching for these materials can be daunting. The rubric evaluates OER repositories in the following areas: Authority, Audience, Access & Diversity, User-friendliness, Subject Coverage, Search Functionality & Browsing, Media Type, Licensing & Permissions.

Open Educational Resources (OER)

Criteria for Evaluating OER Content

Consider the following when evaluating OER for use in your course:

Content Coverage

How much of the content that you want is covered in the resource? Who is the intended audience?

Is an effective index or glossary provided? Is adequate context provided for any jargon or technical terminology?

Content Organization and Accuracy

Are topics presented in a logical and clear fashion? Is the content accurate, error-free and unbiased?

Course Alignment

How does the resource align with your course learning objectives?

Relevance / Longevity

Is the content up-to-date, but not in a way that will quickly make the text obsolete?

Is the text written / arranged so that necessary updates will be relatively easy or straightforward to implement?

Modularity

Is the text easily divisible into smaller sections that can be assigned at different points within the course?

Accessibility

Are all parts of the resource (images, tables, videos) accessible for all students, including those with disabilities?

Review the Accessibility page of this guide for more information.

Interface

Is the resource free of significant interface issues, including navigation problems or distortion of images / charts?

Is the resource free of any display features that may distract or confuse the reader?

Inclusivity

Is the content inclusive of a broad set of people and viewpoints? Are examples of diverse perspectives included?

Do images represent many different kinds of people and backgrounds?

Format(s) Available

What format is the resource available in? Does that work for your course?

Evaluation Rubrics and Checklists

The following rubrics and checklists may also be helpful when evaluating OER content.