LibGuides: Open Educational Resources: For Students

Contact Us

Library Services

Ask a Librarian: Library@csmd.edu

La Plata: 301-934-7676

Amy Spitz
Instruction & OER Librarian (Faculty)
aspitz@csmd.edu

Leonardtown: 240-725-5360

Mary Johnson
Interim Library Director
mbjohnson@csmd.edu

Prince Frederick: 443-550-6060

OER for Students

Why should students care about Open Educational Resources (OERs)?

OERs can be helpful resources for students to supplement classroom instruction and required texts.
They can also be great ways to work on some self-guided learning on topics outside of (or beyond) CSM courses.
Students can be great advocates! They can learn more about OERs in their discipline and suggest or encourage faculty to adopt OERs in place of expensive textbooks.

OER Commons
"OER Commons is a public digital library of open educational resources." Search by subject, education level, type of material, and more.
M.O.S.T. Commons
Explore open educational resources (open textbooks, extra readings, learning activities, lectures, and more) for a variety of subjects, from the Maryland Open Source Textbook initiative.
Open Textbook Library
Collection of over a thousand open textbooks, supported by the Open Education Network. Includes a wide range of subjects.

Open Online Courses

There are many FREE online courses - often created by top universities - that are available through a variety of services, platforms, and websites. Check out these resources to find courses in everything from storytelling, to everyday economics, to data science, to astrophysics!

CourseBuffet
Search for free college courses from over 17 platforms and 200+ universities.
CourseTalk
Provides reviews and ratings of more than 30,000 online courses and MOOCs.
Open Culture
Access free online courses from universities, collections of online certificate programs, eBooks, audiobooks, movies, podcasts, and other educational resources.
Coursera
Offers online courses (many available for free) from universities, across a wide range of subjects.
edX
Free online courses from top universities including Harvard, MIT, UC Berkeley, and more!
Independent Learner Courses (OLI)
Open & free or low-cost courses for independent learners, available through Carnegie Mellon University's Open Learning Initiative (OLI).
MIT OpenCourseWare
MIT OpenCourseWare (OCW) is a web-based publication of virtually all MIT course content. OCW is open and available to the world and is a permanent MIT activity. Subject coverage spans the humanities, social sciences, and sciences.
Open Yale Courses
Provides free and open access to a selection of introductory courses taught by distinguished teachers and scholars at Yale University. The aim of the project is to expand access to educational materials for all who wish to learn.
Stanford Engineering Everywhere
Stanford offers some of its most popular engineering classes free of charge to students and educators around the world. View lecture videos, access reading lists and other course handouts, take quizzes and tests, and communicate with other SEE students.

Student Advocacy

Make Textbooks Affordable (Student Public Interest Research Groups)
Campaign by Student PIRGS dedicated to improving access to affordable high quality learning materials.
Open Textbooks Organizing Toolkit (Student PIRGs)
Toolkit for student governments and other student leaders with instructions and tips for bringing open textbooks to your campus.