Research Guides: Open Educational Resources (OER) &amp; Textbook Equity: Teacher Education/PreK-12

How do I even start if I'm thinking about textbook equity/affordability?

Request a Course Materials Affordability Review
Instructors can complete this form and attach a syllabus (a draft or even a topic list would be sufficient). Rod Library faculty will review course concepts and share some free and/or affordable resources that may have potential for the course. Allow about 2 weeks. Instructors have ultimate responsibility for reviewing course material quality as well as academic freedom to select the best course materials.
Place course materials on course reserve through Rod Library
Course reserves allow equal access to library (or instructor-owned) copies of course materials for all students. Rod Library can place physical materials on reserve at the Library Services Desk for in-house 3-hour checkout (or other time specified by instructor). In addition, up to 10% of a book may be scanned by library staff and placed on electronic course reserve for up to one semester.
Join the UNI Textbook Equity Google Group
This Google Group is for faculty, staff, and students interested in the campuswide Textbook Equity initiative. Occasional announcements, including funding opportunities, will be shared via this email-based group. Contact Anne Marie Gruber to be added.

What if I want to share course materials I've created or modify/customize something listed here?

Whether you have a homegrown course "packet" or aspire to create an entire textbook, Rod Library can support you in creating, licensing, and sharing materials that you intend to be free of charge. This includes modifying existing materials that are openly-licensed. Details: https://guides.lib.uni.edu/oer/authoring

Suggested Resources

Below are selected Open Educational Resources (OER) in education, with an emphasis on resources used by other Iowa colleges/universities as well as textbooks reviewed in the Open Textbook Library or by relevant associations. Some free resources may be included that aren't technically OER because they do not have open licenses. Be sure to evaluate each resource for quality and usage rights.

For more, use the Find Open Textbooks tab on the left side of this guide. Rod Library's OneSearch also includes some open textbooks as well as licensed ebooks; note that if you plan to use a library-licensed ebook for a course, you need to notify your liaison librarian well in advance (more on textbooks & library ebooks).

Lesson Plan Resources

Iowa AEA OER
Built into OER Commons, this hub "brings Iowa educators high-quality OER content in many different formats for use in the classroom and beyond".
Virginia Inquiry Collaborative
Cross-curricular, English, and/or Social Studies inquiries designed using the Inquiry Design Model (IDM), a distinctive approach to creating curriculum and instructional materials that honors teachers’ knowledge and expertise, avoids over prescription, and focuses on the main elements of the instructional design process as envisioned in the Inquiry Arc of the C3 Framework.

Resources for Teacher Education

Open Textbook Library: Education titles
OpenStax free books for K12
Pressbooks: Education titles
EdTechBooks.org
Not technically OER because not all content may provide freedom to users for remixing, etc.
CUNY Teacher Education (TED) Hub
"A resource site for teacher educators who want to enhance their courses and practice through OER."
Minnesota State University Open Textbooks Pilot Program
Will create open textbooks and open educational resources (OER) for 5 high-enrollment core teacher education courses that will provide significant savings for students while maintaining or improving student learning outcomes. Courses impacted will be: Introduction to Education, Foundations of Instruction, Educational Technology, Introduction to Literacy, and Special Education.
Iowa OER Action Team
Statewide initiative with the vision: "Every college student in Iowa will have access to courses or programs fully using OER to support an affordable, high quality education." Includes email group to stay connected.

Articles of Note

Cummings-Clay, D. (2020). Impact of OER in teacher education. Open Praxis, 12(4), 541–554. http://doi.org/10.5944/openpraxis.12.4.1112

Richardson, J. C., Castellanos Reyes, D., Janakiraman, S., & Duha, M. S. U. (2023). The process of developing a digital repository for online teaching using design-based research. TechTrends, 67(2), 217-230. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11528-022-00795-w
Recipient of Best Research Paper Award, American Educational Research Association (AERA) Design and Technology Special Interest Group (SIG).

Thompson, L., Lantz, J., & Sullivan, B. (2019). Pre-service teacher awareness of Open Educational Resources. The International Journal of Open Educational Resources, 1(2), 25059. https://www.ijoer.org/pre-service-teacher-awareness-of-open-educational-resources/

Van Allen, J., & Katz, S. (2019). Developing open practices in teacher education: An example of integrating OER and developing renewable assignments. Open Praxis, 11(3), 311-319. https://doi.org/10.5944/openpraxis.11.3.972

Selected Free Textbooks

Early Childhood Literacy: Engaging and Empowering Emergent Readers and Writers, Birth – Age 5 by Christine Pegorraro Schull, Leslie La Croix, and Sara E. Miller
Call Number: ebook
Publication Date: 2021
Foundations of Education by AbuAssaly George et al.
Call Number: ebook
Publication Date: 2023
Infant and Toddler Care and Development by Taintor, et al.
Call Number: ebook
Publication Date: 2022
Kids Read the Best Stuff: An Openly Sourced Textbook Covering the Study of Children's Literature by Priebe
Call Number: ebook
Publication Date: 2023
Various formats & versions available in author's shared folder. All licensed for reuse & modification.
Methods of Teaching Early Literacy by Gurjar, Meacham, & Beecher
Call Number: ebook
Publication Date: 2023
Authored by UNI & ISU faculty through Iowa Regents OER Grant Program.
Trauma Informed Education by Govind Krishnamoorthy, Kay Ayre, and Dayna Schimke
Call Number: ebook
Publication Date: 2023